California 
legional 
'acility 


LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  W 
CALIFORNIA 

SAN  DIEGO 


by 

MRS  ETHEL  ROGERS 


HISTORY  OF  THE  CONFLICT 

BETWEEN 

RELIGION  AND  SCIENCE 


BY 

]jOHN   WILLIAM   DRAPER,    M.  D.,    LL.  D. 

PROFESSOR    IN    THE    UNIVERSITY    OF   NEW    YORK, 

AUTHOR   OF 

A    TREATISE    ON    HUMAN    PHYSIOLOGY,    HISTORY    OF    THE    INTELLECTUAL 

DEVELOPMENT  OF  EUROPE,  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  CIVIL  WAR, 

AN'D    OF    MANY    EXPERIMENTAL   MEMOIRS    ON    CHEMICAL 

AND    OTHER    SCIENTIFIC    SUBJECTS 


NEW    YORK 
D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY 

1898 


ENTERED,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1874,  by 

JOHN  WILLIAM  DRAPER,  M.  D.,  LL.  D., 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


PREFACE. 


WHOEVER  has  had  an  opportunity  of  becoming  ac- 
quainted with  the  mental  condition  of  the  intelligent 
classes  in  Europe  and  America,  must  have  perceived 
that  there  is  a  great  and  rapidly-increasing  departure 
from  the  public  religious  faith,  and  that,  while  among 
the  more  frank  this  divergence  is  not  concealed,  there 
is  a  far  more  extensive  and  far  more  dangerous  seces- 
sion, private  and  unacknowledged. 

So  wide-spread  and  so  powerful  is  this  secession, 
that  it  can  neither  be  treated  with  contempt  nor  with 
punishment.  It  cannot  be  extinguished  by  derision, 
by  vituperation,  or  by  force.  The  time  is  rapidly 
approaching  when  it  will  give  rise  to  serious  political 
results. 

Ecclesiastical  spirit  no  longer  inspires  the  policy  of 
the  world.  Military  fervor  in  behalf  of  faith  has  dis- 
appeared. Its  only  souvenirs  are  the  marble  effigies 
of  crusading  knights,  reposing  in  the  silent  crypts  of 
churches  on  their  tombs. 

That  a  crisis  is  impending  is  shown  by  the  attitude 
of  the  great  powers  toward  the  papacy.  The  papacy 


vi  PREFACE. 

represents  the  ideas  and  aspirations  of  two-thirds  of  the 
population  of  Europe.  It  insists  on  a  political  suprem- 
acy in  accordance  with  its  claims  to  a  divine  origin 
and  mission,  and  a  restoration  of  the  mediaeval  order 
of  things,  loudly  declaring  that  it  will  accept  no  recon- 
ciliation with  modern  civilization. 

The  antagonism  we  thus  witness  between  Eeligion 
and  Science  is  the  continuation  of  a  struggle  that  com- 
menced when  Christianity  began  to  attain  political  pow- 
er. A  divine  revelation  must  necessarily  be  intolerant 
of  contradiction;  it  must  repudiate  all  improvement  in 
itself,  and  view  with  disdain  that  arising  from  the  pro- 
gressive intellectual  development  of  man.  But  our 
opinions  on  every  subject  are  continually  liable  to  mod- 
ification, from  the  irresistible  advance  of  human  knowl- 
edge. 

Can  we  exaggerate  the  importance  of  a  contention  in 
which  every  thoughtful  person  must  take  part  whether 
he  will  or  not?  In  a  matter  so  solemn  as  that  of  reli- 
gion, all  men,  whose  temporal  interests  are  not  involved 
in  existing  institutions,  earnestly  desire  to  find  the 
truth.  They  seek  information  as  to  the  subjects  in 
dispute,  and  as  to  the  conduct  of  the  disputants. 

The  history  of  Science  is  not  a  mere  record  of  iso- 
lated discoveries;  it  is  a  narrative  of  the  conflict  of  two 
contending  powers,  the  expansive  force  of  the  human 
intellect  on  one  side,  and  the  compression  arising  from 
traditionary  faith  and  human  interests  on  the  other. 

No  one  has  hitherto  treated  the  subject  from  this 


PREFACE.  vii 

point  of  view.  Yet  from  this  point  it  presents  itself 
to  us  as  a  living  issue — in  fact,  as  the  most  important 
of  all  living  issues. 

A  few  years  ago,  it  was  the  politic  and  therefore 
the  proper  course  to  abstain  from  all  allusion  to  this 
controversy,  and  to  keep  it  as  far  as  possible  in  the 
background.  The  tranquillity  of  society  depends  so 
much  on  the  stability  of  its  religious  convictions,  that 
no  one  can  be  justified  in  wantonly  disturbing  them. 
But  faith  is  in  its  nature  unchangeable,  stationary; 
Science  is  in  its  nature  progressive;  and  eventually  a 
divergence  between  them,  impossible  to  conceal,  must 
take  place.  It  then  becomes  the  duty  of  those  whose 
lives  have  made  them  familiar  with  both  modes  of 
thought,  to  present  modestly,  but  firmly,  their  views; 
to  compare  the  antagonistic  pretensions  calmly,  impar- 
tially, philosophically.  History  shows  that,  if  this  be 
not  done,  social  misfortunes,  disastrous  and  enduring, 
will  ensue.  When  the  old  mythological  religion  of 
Europe  broke  down  under  the  weight  of  its  own  incon- 
sistencies, neither  the  Eoman  emperors  nor  the  phi- 
losophers of  those  times  did  any  thing  adequate  for  the 
guidance  of  public  opinion.  They  left  religious  affairs 
to  take  their  chance,  and  accordingly  those  affairs  fell 
into  the  hands  of  ignorant  and  infuriated  ecclesiastics, 
parasites,  eunuchs,  and  slaves. 

The  intellectual  night  which  settled  on  Europe,  in 
consequence  of  that  great  neglect  of  duty,  is  passing 
away;  we  live  in  the  daybreak  of  better  things.  So- 


viil  PREFACE. 

ciety  is  anxiously  expecting  light,  to  see  in  what  direc- 
tion it  is  drifting.  It  plainly  discerns  that  the  track 
along  which  the  voyage  of  civilization  has  thus  far  been 
made,  has  been  left;  and  that  a  new  departure,  on  an 
unknown  sea,  has  been  taken. 

Though  deeply  impressed  with  such  thoughts,  I 
should  not  have  presumed  to  write  this  book,  or  to 
intrude  on  the  public  the  ideas  it  presents,  had  I  not 
made  the  facts  with  which  it  deals  a  subject  of  long 
and  earnest  meditation.  And  I  have  gathered  a  strong 
incentive  to  undertake  this  duty  from  the  circumstance 
that  a  "  History  of  the  Intellectual  Development  of  Eu- 
rope," published  by  me  several  years  ago,  which  has 
passed  through  many  editions  in  America,  and  has  been 
reprinted  in  numerous  European  languages,  English, 
French,  German,  Russian,  Polish,  Servian,  etc.,  is  every- 
where received  with  favor. 

In  collecting  and  arranging  the  materials  for  the 
volumes  I  published  under  the  title  of  "  A  History  of 
the  American  Civil  War,"  a  work  of  very  great  labor, 
I  had  become  accustomed  to  the  comparison  of  con- 
flicting statements,  the  adjustment  of  conflicting  claims. 
The  approval  with  which  that  book  has  been  received 
by  the  American  public,  a  critical  judge  of  the  events 
considered,  has  inspired  me  with  additional  confidence. 
I  had  also  devoted  much  attention  to  the  experimental 
investigation  of  natural  phenomena,  and  had  published 
many  well-known  memoirs  on  such  subjects.  And  per- 
haps no  one  can  give  himself  to  these  pursuits,  and  spend 


PREFACE.  ix 

a  large  part  of  his  life  in  the  public  teaching  of  science, 
without  partaking  of  that  love  of  impartiality  and  truth 
which  Philosophy  incites.  She  inspires  us  with  a  desire 
to  dedicate  our  days  to  the  good  of  our  race,  so  that  in 
the  fading  light  of  life's  evening  we  may  not,  on  look- 
ing back,  be  forced  to  acknowledge  how  unsubstantial 
and  useless  are  the  objects  that  we  have  pursued. 

Though  I  have  spared  no  pains  in  the  composition 
of  this  book,  I  am  very  sensible  how  unequal  it  is  to 
the  subject,  to  do  justice  to  which  a  knowledge  of  sci- 
ence, history,  theology,  politics,  is  required;  every  page 
should  be  alive  with  intelligence  and  glistening  with 
facts.  But  then  I  have  remembered  that  this  is  only  as 
it  were  the  preface,  or  forerunner,  of  a  body  of  litera- 
ture, which  the  events  and  wants  of  our  times  will  call 
forth.  We  have  come  to  the  brink  of  a  great  intel- 
lectual change.  Much  of  the  frivolous  reading  of  the 
present  will  be  supplanted  by  a  thoughtful  and  austere 
literature,  vivified,  by  endangered  interests,  and  made 
fervid  by  ecclesiastical  passion. 

What  I  have  sought  to  do  is,  to  present  a  clear  and 
impartial  statement  of  the  views  and  acts  of  the  two 
contending  parties.  In  one  sense  I  have  tried  to  iden- 
tify myself  with  each,  so  as  to  comprehend  thoroughly 
their  motives;  but  in  another  and  higher  sense  I  have 
endeavored  to  stand  aloof,  and  relate  with  impartiality 
their  actions. 

I  therefore  trust  that  those,  who  may  be  disposed  to 
criticise  this  book,  will  bear  in  mind  that  its  object  is 


x  PREFACE. 

not  to  advocate  the  views  and  pretensions  of  either 
party,  but  to  explain  clearly,  and  without  shrinking, 
those  of  both.  In  the  management  of  each  chapter 
I  have  usually  set  forth  the  orthodox  view  first,  and 
then  followed  it  with  that  of  its  opponents. 

In  thus  treating  the  subject  it  has  not  been  necessary 
to  pay  much  regard  to  more  moderate  or  intermediate 
opinions,  for,  though  they  may  be  intrinsically  of  great 
value,  in  conflicts  of  this  kind  it  is  not  with  the  mod- 
erates but  with  the  extremists  that  the  impartial  reader 
is  mainly  concerned.  Their  movements  determine  the 
issue. 

For  this  reason  I  have  had  little  to  say  respecting 
the  two  great  Christian  confessions,  the  Protestant  and 
Greek  Churches.  As  to  the  latter,  it  has  never,  since 
the  restoration  of  science,  arrayed  itself  in  opposition  to 
the  advancement  of  knowledge.  On  the  contrary,  it 
has  always  met  it  with  welcome.  It  has  observed  a 
reverential  attitude  to  truth,  from  whatever  quarter  it 
might  come.  Recognizing  the  apparent  discrepancies 
between  its  interpretations  of  revealed  truth  and  the 
discoveries  of  science,  it  has  always  expected  that  sat- 
isfactory explanations  and  reconciliations  would  ensue, 
and  in  this  it  has  not  been  disappointed.  It  would 
have  been  well  for  modern  civilization  if  the  Roman 
Church  had  done  the  same. 

In  speaking  of  Christianity,  reference  is  generally 
made  to  the  Roman  Church,  partly  because  its  adherents 
compose  the  majority  of  Christendom,  partly  because 


PREFACE.  xi 

its  demands  are  the  most  pretentious,  and  partly  because 
it  has  commonly  sought  to  enforce  those  demands  by 
the  civil  power.  None  of  the  Protestant  Churches  has 
ever  occupied  a  position  so  imperious — none  has  ever 
had  such  wide-spread  political  influence.  For  the  most 
part  they  have  been  averse  to  constraint,  and  except  in 
very  few  instances  their  opposition  has  not  passed  be- 
yond the  exciting  of  theological  odium. 

As  to  Science,  she  has  never  sought  to  ally  herself  to 
civil  power.  She  has  never  attempted  to  throw  odium 
or  inflict  social  ruin  on  any  human  being.  She  has 
never  subjected  any  one  to  mental  torment,  physical 
torture,  least  of  all  to  death,  for  the  purpose  of  uphold- 
ing or  promoting  her  ideas.  She  presents  herself  un- 
stained by  cruelties  and  crimes.  But  in  the  Vatican — 
we  have  only  to  recall  the  Inquisition— the  hands  that 
are  now  raised  in  appeals  to  the  Most  Merciful  are 
crimsoned.  They  have  been  steeped  in  blood! 

There  are  two  modes  of  historical  composition,  the 
artistic  and  the  scientific.  The  former  implies  that  men 
give  origin  to  events;  it  therefore  selects  some  promi- 
nent individual,  pictures  him  under  a  fanciful  form, 
and  makes  him  the  hero  of  a  romance.  The  latter,  in- 
sisting that  human  affairs  present  an  unbroken  chain,  in 
which  each  fact  is  the  offspring  of  some  preceding  fact, 
and  the  parent  of  some  subsequent  fact,  declares  that 
men  do  not  control  events,  but  that  events  control  men. 
The  former  gives  origin  to  compositions,  which,  however 
much  they  may  interest  or  delight  us,  are  but  a  grade 


xii  PREFACE. 

above  novels;  the  latter  is  austere,  perhaps  even  repul- 
sive, for  it  sternly  impresses  us  with  a  conviction  of  the 
irresistible  dominion  of  law,  and  the  insignificance  of 
human  exertions.  In  a  subject  so  solemn  as  that  to 
which  this  book  is  devoted,  the  romantic  and  the  popu- 
lar are  altogether  out  of  place.  He  who  presumes  to 
treat  of  it  must  fix  his  eyes  steadfastly  on  that  chain  of 
destiny  which  universal  history  displays;  he  must  turn 
with  disdain  from  the  phantom  impostures  of  pontiffs 
and  statesmen  and  kings. 

If  any  thing  were  needed  to  show  us  the  untrust- 
worthiness  of  artistic  historical  compositions,  our  per- 
sonal experience  would  furnish  it.  How  often  do  our 
most  intimate  friends  fail  to  perceive  the  real  motives 
of  our  every-day  actions;  how  frequently  they  misin- 
terpret our  intentions!  If  this  be  the  case  in  what  is 
passing  before  our  eyes,  may  we  not  be  satisfied  that  it 
is  impossible  to  comprehend  justly  the  doings  of  persons 
who  lived  many  years  ago,  and  whom  we  have  never  seen? 

In  selecting  and  arranging  the  topics  now  to  be  pre- 
sented, I  have  been  guided  in  part  by  "  the  Confession  " 
of  the  late  Vatican  Council,  and  in  part  by  the  order  of 
events  in  history.  Not  without  interest  will  the  reader 
remark  that  the  subjects  offer  themselves  to  us  now 
as  they  did  to  the  old  philosophers  of  Greece.  "We 
still  deal  with  the  same  questions  about  which  they  dis- 
puted. What  is  God?  What  is  the  soul?  What  is 
the  world?  How  is  it  governed?  Have  we  any  stand- 
ard or  criterion  of  truth?  And  the  thoughtful  reader 


PREFACE.  xiii 

will  earnestly  ask,  "  Are  our  solutions  of  these  prob- 
lems any  better  than  theirs?  " 

The  general  argument  of  this  book,  then,  is  as  fol- 
lows: 

I  first  direct  attention  to  the  origin  of  modern  sci- 
ence as  distinguished  from  ancient,  by  depending  on 
observation,  experiment,  and  mathematical  discussion, 
instead  of  mere  speculation,  and  shall  show  that  it  was 
a  consequence  of  the  Macedonian  campaigns,  which 
brought  Asia  and  Europe  into  contact.  A  brief  sketch 
of  those  campaigns,  and  of  the  Museum  of  Alexandria, 
illustrates  its  character. 

Then  with  brevity  I  recall  the  well-known  origin 
of  Christianity,  and  show  its  advance  to  the  attainment 
of  imperial  power,  the  transformation  it  underwent  by 
its  incorporation  with  paganism,  the  existing  religion 
of  the  Koman  Empire.  A  clear  conception  of  its  in- 
compatibility with  science  caused  it  to  suppress  forcibly 
the  Schools  of  Alexandria.  It  was  constrained  to  this 
by  the  political  necessities  of  its  position. 

The  parties  to  the  conflict  thus  placed,  I  next  relate 
the  story  of  their  first  open  struggle;  it  is  the  first  or 
Southern  Reformation.  The  point  in  dispute  had  re- 
spect to  the  nature  of  God.  It  involved  the  rise  of 
Mohammedanism.  Its  result  was,  that  much  of  Asia 
and  Africa,  with  the  historic  cities  Jerusalem,  'Alex- 
andria, and  Carthage,  were  wrenched  from  Christendom, 
and  the  doctrine  of  the  Unity  of  God  established  in  the 
larger  portion  of  what  had  been  the  Roman  Empire. 


XJV  PREFACE. 

This  political  event  was  followed  by  the  restoration 
of  science,  the  establishment  of  colleges,  schools,  libra- 
ries, throughout  the  dominions  of  the  Arabians.  Those 
conquerors,  pressing  forward  rapidly  in  their  intellect- 
ual development,  rejected  the  anthropomorphic  ideas  of 
the  nature  of  God  remaining  in  their  popular  belief, 
and  accepted  other  more  philosophical  ones,  akin  to 
those  that  had  long  previously  been  attained  to  in 
India.  The  result  of  this  was  a  second  conflict,  that 
respecting  the  nature  of  the  soul.  Under  the  designa- 
tion of  Averroism,  there  came  into  prominence  the  the- 
ories of  Emanation  and  Absorption.  At  the  close  of  the 
middle  ages  the  Inquisition  succeeded  in  excluding 
those  doctrines  from  Europe,  and  now  the  Vatican 
Council  has  formally  and  solemnly  anathematized  them. 

Meantime,  through  the  cultivation  of  astronomy, 
geography,  and  other  sciences,  correct  views  had  been 
gained  as  to  the  position  and  relations  of  the  earth,  and 
as  to  the  structure  of  the  world;  and  since  Eeligion, 
resting  itself  on  what  was  assumed  to  be  the  proper 
interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,  insisted  that  the  earth 
is  the  central  and  most  important  part  of  the  universe, 
a  third  conflict  broke'  out.  In  this  Galileo  led  the  way 
on  the  part  of  Science.  Its  issue  was  the  overthrow  of 
the  Church  on  the  question  in  dispute.  Subsequently  a 
subordinate  controversy  arose  respecting  the  age  of  the 
world,  the  Church  insisting  that  it  is  only  about  six 
thousand  years  old.  In  this  she  was  again  overthrown. 

The  light  of  history  and  of  science  had  been  gradu- 


PREFACE.  xv 

ally  spreading  over  Europe.  In  the  sixteenth  century 
the  prestige  of  Eoman  Christianity  was  greatly  dimin- 
ished by  the  intellectual  reverses  it  had  experienced, 
and  also  by  its  political  and  moral  condition.  It  was 
clearly  seen  by  many  pious  men  that  Eeligion  was  not 
accountable  for  the  false  position  in  which  she  was 
found,  but  that  the  misfortune  was  directly  traceable  to 
the  alliance  she  had  of  old  contracted  with  Eoman  pa- 
ganism. The  obvious  remedy,  therefore,  was  a  return 
to  primitive  purity.  Thus  arose  the  fourth  conflict, 
known  to  us  as  the  Eeformation — the  second  or  North- 
ern Eeformation.  The  special  form  it  assumed  was  a 
contest  respecting  the  standard  or  criterion  of  truth, 
whether  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  Church  or  in  the 
Bible.  The  determination  of  this  involved  a  settle- 
ment of  the  rights  of  reason,  or  intellectual  freedom. 
Luther,  who  is  the  conspicuous  man  of  the  epoch,  car- 
ried into  effect  his  intention  with  no  inconsiderable 
success;  and  at  the  close  of  the  struggle  it  was  found 
that  Northern  Europe  was  lost  to  Eoman  Christianity. 

We  are  now  in  the  midst  of  a  controversy  respecting 
the  mode  of  government  of  the  world,  whether  it  be  by 
incessant  divine  intervention,  or  by  the  operation  of  pri- 
mordial and  unchangeable  law.  The  intellectual  move- 
ment of  Christendom  has  reached  that  point  which 
Arabism  had  attained  to  in  the  tenth  and  eleventh  cen- 
turies; and  doctrines  which  were  then  discussed  are  pre- 
senting themselves  again  for  review;  such  are  those  of 
Evolution,  Creation,  Development. 


xvi  PREFACE. 

Offered  under  these  general  titles,  I  think  it  will  be 
found  that  all  the  essential  points  of  this  great  contro- 
versy are  included.  By  grouping  under  these  compre- 
hensive heads  the  facts  to  be  considered,  and  dealing 
with  each  group  separately,  we  shall  doubtless  acquire 
clear  views  of  their  inter-connection  and  their  histori- 
cal succession. 

I  have  treated  of  these  conflicts  as  nearly  as  I  con- 
veniently could  in  their  proper  chronological  order,  and, 
for  the  sake  of  completeness,  have  added  chapters  on — 

An  examination  of  what  Latin  Christianity  has  done 
for  modern  civilization. 

A  corresponding  examination  of  what  Science  has 
done. 

The  attitude  of  Eoman  Christianity  in  the  impend- 
ing conflict,  as  defined  by  the  Vatican  Council. 

The  attention  of  many  truth-seeking  persons  has 
been  so  exclusively  given  to  the  details  of  sectarian  dis- 
sensions, that  the  long  strife,  to  the  history  of  which 
these  pages  are  devoted,  is  popularly  but  little  known. 
Having  tried  to  keep  steadfastly  in  view  the  determina- 
tion to  write  this  work  in  an  impartial  spirit,  to  speak 
with  respect  of  the  contending  parties,  but  never  to  con- 
ceal the  truth,  I  commit  it  to  the  considerate  judgment 
of  the  thoughtful  reader. 

JOHN  WILLIAM  DRAPER. 
UNIVERSITY,  NEW  YORK,  December,  187S. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  ORIGIN  OF   SCIENCE. 

PAGE 

Religious  condition  of  the  Greeks  in  the  fourth  century  before 
Christ. — Their  invasion  of  the  Persian  Empire  brings  them 
in  contact  with  new  aspects  of  Nature,  and  familiarizes 
them  with  new  religious  systems. — The  military,  engineer- 
ing, and  scientific  activity,  stimulated  by  the  Macedonian 
campaigns,  leads  to  the  establishment  in  Alexandria  of  an 
institute,  the  Museum,  for  the  cultivation  of  knowledge 
by  experiment,  observation,  and  mathematical  discussion. 
.  — It  is  the  origin  of  Science 1 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE  ORIGIN  OF  CHRISTIANITY. — ITS   TRANSFORMATION  ON  ATTAIN- 
ING  IMPERIAL   POWER. — ITS   RELATIONS   TO   SCIENCE. 

Religious  condition  of  the  Roman  Republic. — The  adoption  of 
imperialism  leads  to  monotheism. — Christianity  spreads 
over  the  Roman  Empire. — The  circumstances  under  which 
it  attained  imperial  power  make  its  union  with  Paganism 
a  political  necessity. — Tertullian's  description  of  its  doc- 
trines and  practices. — Debasing  effect  of  the  policy  of 
Constantine  on  it. — Its  alliance  with  the  civil  power. — Its 
incompatibility  with  science. — Destruction  of  the  Alexan- 
drian Library  and  prohibition  of  philosophy. — Exposition 
of  the  Augustinian  philosophy  and  Patristic  science  gen- 
erally.— The  Scriptures  made  the  standard  of  science  .  34 
xvii 


xviii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III.  PAOIt 

CONFLICT   RESPECTING  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  THE  UNITY  OF   GOD. — 
THE   FIRST   OR   SOUTHERN   REFORMATION. 

The  Egyptians  insist  on  the  introduction  of  the  worship  of  the 
Virgin  Mary. — They  are  resisted  by  Nestor,  the  Patriarch 
of  Constantinople,  but  eventually,  through  their  influence 
with  the  emperor,  cause  Nestor's  exile  and  the  dispersion 
of  his  followers. 

Prelude  to  the  Southern  Reformation. — The  Persian  attack ; 
its  moral  effects. 

The  Arabian  Reformation. — Mohammed  is  brought  in  contact 
with  the  Nestorians. — He  adopts  and  extends  their  prin- 
ciples, rejecting  the  worship  of  the  Virgin,  the  doctrine 
of  the  Trinity,  and  everything  in  opposition  to  the  unity 
of  God. — He  extinguishes  idolatry  in  Arabia  by  force, 
and  prepares  to  make  war  on  the  Roman  Empire. — His  suc- 
cessors conquer  Syria,  Egypt,  Asia  Minor,  North  Africa, 
Spain,  and  invade  France. 

As  the  result  of  this  conflict,  the  doctrine  of  the  unity  of  God 
was  established  in  the  greater  part  of  the  Roman  Empire. 
— The  cultivation  of  science  was  restored,  and  Christen- 
dom lost  many  of  her  most  illustrious  capitals,  as  Alexan- 
dria, Carthage,  and,  above  all,  Jerusalem  .  .  .  .68 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   RESTORATION  OF  SCIENCE  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

By  the  influence  of  the  Nestorians  and  Jews,  the  Arabians  are 
turned  to  the  cultivation  of  Science. — They  modify  their 
views  as  to  the  destiny  of  man,  and  obtain  true  concep- 
tions respecting  the  structure  of  the  world.— They  as- 
certain the  size  of  the  earth,  and  determine  its  shape. — 
Their  khalifs  collect  great  libraries,  patronize  every  de- 
partment of  science  and  literature,  establish  astronomical 
observatories. — They  develop  the  mathematical  sciences, 
invent  algebra,  and  improve  geometry  and  trigonometry. 
— They  collect  and  translate  the  old  Greek  mathematical 
and  astronomical  works,  and  adopt  the  inductive  method 
of  Aristotle. — They  establish  many  colleges,  and,  with  the 


CONTENTS.  xix 

PAGE 

aid  of  the  Nestorians,  organize  a  public-school  system. — 
They  introduce  the  Arabic  numerals  and  arithmetic,  and 
catalogue  and  give  names  to  the  stars. — They  lay  the  foun- 
dation of  modern  astronomy,  chemistry,  and  physics,  and 
introduce  great  improvements  in  agriculture  and  manu- 
factures .  102 


'  CHAPTER  V. 

CONFLICT    RESPECTING    THE    NATURE    OF    THE    SOUL. — DOCTRINE 
OF   EMANATION   AND   ABSORPTION. 

European  ideas  respecting  the  soul. — It  resembles  the  form  of 
the  body. 

Philosophical  views  of  the  Orientals. — The  Vedic  theology  and 
Buddhism  assert  the  doctrine  of  emanation  and  absorp- 
tion.— It  is  advocated  by  Aristotle,  who  is  followed  by  the 
Alexandrian  school,  and  subsequently  by  the  Jews  and 
Arabians. — It  is  found  in  the  writings  of  Erigena. 

Connection  of  this  doctrine  with  the  theory  of  conservation 
and  correlation  of  force. — Parallel  between  the  origin  and 
destiny  of  the  body  and  the  soul. — The  necessity  of  found- 
ing human  on  comparative  psychology. 

Averroism,  which  is  based  on  these  facts,  is  brought  into 
Christendom  through  Spain  and  Sicily. 

History  of  the  repression  of  Averroism. — Revolt  of  Islam 
against  it. — Antagonism  of  the  Jewish  synagogues. — Its 
destruction  undertaken  by  the  papacy. — Institution  of  the 
Inquisition  in  Spain. — Frightful  persecutions  and  their 
resuks. — Expulsion  of  the  Jews  and  Moors. — Overthrow 
of  Averroism  in  Europe. — Decisive  action  of  the  late 
Vatican  Council 119 

CHAPTER  VI. 

CONFLICT  RESPECTING  THE   NATURE  OF  THE   WORLD. 

Scriptural  view  of  the  world :  the  earth  a  flat  surface ;  loca- 
tion of  heaven  and  hell. 

Scientific  view :  the  earth  a  globe ;  its  size  determined ;  its 
position  in  and  relations  to  the  solar  system. — The  three 


xx  CONTENTS. 

PAGB 

great  voyages. — Columbus,  De  Gama,  Magellan. — Circum- 
navigation of  the  earth. — Determination  of  its  curvature 
by  the  measurement  of  a  degree  and  by  the  pendulum. 

The  discoveries  of  Copernicus. — Invention  of  the  telescope. — 
Galileo  brought  before  the  Inquisition. — His  punishment. 
— Victory  over  the  Church. 

Attempts  to  ascertain  the  dimensions  of  the  solar  system. — 
Determination  of  the  sun's  parallax  by  the  transits  of 
Venus. — Insignificance  of  the  earth  and  man. 

Ideas  respecting  the  dimensions  of  the  universe. — Parallax  of 
the  stars. — The  plurality  of  worlds  asserted  by  Bruno. — 
He  is  seized  and  murdered  by  the  Inquisition  .  .  .  152 

CHAPTER  VII. 

CONTROVERSY  RESPECTING  THE  AGE  OF  THE   EARTH. 

Scriptural  view  that  the  earth  is  only  six  thousand  years  old, 
and  that  it  was  made  in  a  week. — Patristic  chronology 
founded  on  the  ages  of  the  patriarchs. — Difficulties  arising 
from  different  estimates  in  different  versions  of  the  Bible. 

Legend  of  the  Deluge. — The  repeopling. — The  Tower  of  Babel ; 
the  confusion  of  tongues. — The  primitive  language. 

Discovery  by  Cassini  of  the  oblateness  of  the  planet  Jupiter. — 
Discovery  by  Newton  of  the  oblateness  of  the  earth. — 
Deduction  that  she  has  been  modeled  by  mechanical  causes. 
— Confirmation  of  this  by  geological  discoveries  respect- 
ing aqueous  rocks;  corroboration  by  organic  remains. — 
The  necessity  of  admitting  enormously  long  periods  of 
time. — Displacement  of  the  doctrine  of  Creation  by  that  of 
Evolution. — Discoveries  respecting  the  antiquity  of  man. 

The  time-scale  and  space-scale  of  the  world  are  infinite. — 
Moderation  with  which  the  discussion  of  the  age  of  the 
.  World  has  been  conducted 182 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

CONFLICT   RESPECTING   THE   CRITERION   OF   TRUTH. 

Ancient  philosophy  declares  that  man  has  no  means  of  ascer- 
taining the  truth. 
Differences  of  belief  arise  among  the  early  Christians. — An 


CONTENTS.  xxi 

PAGE 

ineffectual  attempt  is  made  to  remedy  them  by  Councils. 
— Miracle  and  ordeal  proof  introduced. 

The  papacy  resorts  to  auricular  confession  and  the  Inquisi- 
tion.— It  perpetrates  frightful  atrocities  for  the  suppres- 
sion of  differences  of  opinion. 

Effect  of  the  discovery  of  the  Pandects  of  Justinian  and  de- 
velopment of  the  canon  law  on  the  nature  of  evidence. — 
It  becomes  more  scientific. 

The  Reformation  establishes  the  rights  of  individual  reason. — 
Catholicism  asserts  that  the  criterion  of  truth  is  in  the 
Church. — It  restrains  the  reading  of  books  by  the  Index 
Expurgatorius,  and  combats  dissent  by  such  means  as  the 
massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Eve. 

Examination  of  the  authenticity  of  the  Pentateuch  as  the 
Protestant  criterion. — Spurious  character  of  those  books. 

For  Science,  the  criterion  of  truth  is  to  be  found  in  the  revela- 
tions of  Nature ;  for  the  Protestant,  it  is  in  the  Scriptures; 
for  the  Catholic,  in  an  infallible  Pope  ....  201 

CHAPTER  IX. 

CONTROVERSY   RESPECTING  THE  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE   UNIVERSE.     ' 

There  are  two  conceptions  of  the  government  of  the  world : 
1.  By  Providence ;  2.  By  Law. — The  former  maintained  by 
the  priesthood. — Sketch  of  the  introduction  of  the  latter. 

Kepler  discovers  the  laws  that  preside  over  the  solar  system. — 
His  works  are  denounced  by  papal  authority. — The  foun- 
dations of  mechanical  philosophy  are  laid  by  Da  Vinci. — 
Galileo  discovers  the  fundamental  laws  of  Dynamics. — 
Newton  applies  them  to  the  movements  of  the  celestial 
bodies,  and  shows  that  the  solar  system  is  governed  by 
mathematical  necessity. — Herschel  extends  that  conclu- 
sion to  the  universe. — The  nebular  hypothesis. — Theologi- 
cal exceptions  to  it. 

Evidences  of  the  control  of  law  in  the  construction  of  the 
earth,  and  in  the  development  of  the  animal  and  plant 
series. — They  arose  by  Evolution,  not  by  Creation. 

The  reign  of  law  is  exhibited  by  the  historic  career  of  human 
societies,  and  in  the  case  of  individual  man. 

Partial  adoption  of  this  view  by  some  of  the  reformed 
Churches  .  228 


xxii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  X.  PAGE 

LATIN  CHRISTIANITY  IN  RELATION  TO  MODERN  CIVILIZATION. 

For  more  than  a  thousand  years  Latin  Christianity  controlled 
the  intelligence  of  Europe,  and  is  responsible  for  the  result. 

That  result  is  manifested  by  the  condition  of  the  city  of  Rome 
at  the  Reformation,  and  by  the  condition  of  the  Continent 
of  Europe  in  domestic  and  social  life. — European  nations 
suffered  under  the  coexistence  of  a  dual  government,  a 
spiritual  and  a  temporal. — They  were  immersed  in  igno- 
rance, superstition,  discomfort. — Explanation  of  the  fail- 
ure of  Catholicism. — Political  history  of  the  papacy:  it 
was  transmuted  from  a  spiritual  confederacy  into  an  abso- 
lute monarchy. — Action  of  the  College  of  Cardinals  and 
the  Curia. — Demoralization  that  ensued  from  the  necessity 
of  raising  large  revenues. 

The  advantages  accruing  to  Europe  during  the  Catholic  rule 
arose  not  from  direct  intention,  but  were  incidental. 

The  general  result  is,  that  the  political  influence  of  Catholi- 
cism was  prejudicial  to  modern  civilization  .  .  .  245 

CHAPTER  XI. 

SCIENCE   IN   RELATION   TO   MODERN   CIVILIZATION. 

Illustration  of  the  general  influences  of  Science  from  the  his- 
tory of  America. 

THE  INTRODUCTION  OF  SCIENCE  INTO  EUROPE. — It  passed  from 
Moorish  Spain  to  Upper  Italy,  and  was  favored  by  the 
absence  of  the  popes  at  Avignon. — The  effects  of  printing, 
of  maritime  adventure,  and  of  the  Reformation. — Estab- 
lishment of  the  Italian  scientific  societies. 

THE  INTELLECTUAL  INFLUENCE  OF  SCIENCE. — It  changed  the 
mode  and  the  direction  of  thought  in  Europe. — The  trans- 
actions of  the  Royal  Society  of  London,  and  other  scien- 
tific societies,  furnish  an  illustration  of  this. 

THE  ECONOMICAL  INFLUENCE  OF  SCIENCE  is  illustrated  by  the 
numerous  mechanical  and  physical  inventions  made  since 
the  fourteenth  century. — Their  influence  on  health  and 
domestic  life,  on  the  arts  of  peace  and  of  war. 

Answer  to  the  question,  What  has  Science  done  for  humanity  ?  286 


CONTENTS.  xxiii 

CHAPTER  XII.  PAGE 

THE   IMPENDING   CRISIS. 

Indications  of  the  approach  of  a  religious  crisis. — The  pre- 
dominating Christian  Church,  the  Roman,  perceives  this, 
and  makes  preparation  for  it. — Pius  IX.  convokes  an 
(Ecumenical  Council. — Relations  of  the  different  Euro- 
pean governments  to  the  papacy. — Relations  of  the  Church 
to  Science,  as  indicated  by  the  Encyclical  Letter  and  the 
Syllabus. 

Acts  of  the  Vatican  Council  in  relation  to  the  infallibility  of 
the  pope,  and  to  Science. — Abstract  of  decisions  arrived  at. 

Controversy  between  the  Prussian  Government  and  the  papa- 
cy.— It  is  a  contest  between  the  State  and  the  Church  for 
supremacy. — Effect  of  dual  government  in  Europe. — Dec- 
laration by  the  Vatican  Council  of  its  position  as  to  Sci- 
ence.— The  dogmatic  constitution  of  the  Catholic  faith. — 
Its  definitions  respecting  God,  Revelation,  Faith,  Reason. 
— The  anathemas  it  pronounces. — Its  denunciation  of 
modern  civilization. 

The  Protestant  Evangelical  Alliance  and  its  acts. 

General  review  of  the  foregoing  definitions  and  acts. — Pres- 
ent condition  of  the  controversy,  and  its  future  prospects  827 


HISTORY  OF  THE  CONFLICT 
BETWEEN  RELIGION  AND  SCIENCE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  OBIGItf   OF    SCIENCE. 

Religious  condition  of  the  Greeks  in  the  fourth  century  before 
Christ. — Their  invasion  of  the  Persian  Umpire  brings  them 
in  contact  with  new  aspects  of  Nature,  and  familiarizes  them 
with  new  religious  systems. — The  military,  engineering,  and 
scientific  activity,  stimulated  by  the  Macedonian  campaigns, 
leads  to  the  establishment  in  Alexandria  of  an  institute,  the 
Museum,  for  the  cultivation  of  knowledge  by  experiment,  ob- 
servation, and  mathematical  discussion. — It  is  the  origin  of 
Science. 

No  spectacle  can  be  presented  to  the  thoughtful 
mind  more  solemn.,  more  mournful,  than  that  of  the 
dying  of  an  ancient  religion,  which  in  its  day  has  given 
consolation  to  many  generations  of  men. 

Four  centuries  before  the  birth  of  Christ,  Greece 
was  fast  outgrowing  her  ancient  faith.  Her  philoso- 
phers, in  their  studies  of  the  world,  had  been  pro- 
foundly impressed  with  the  contrast  between  the  ma- 
jesty of  the  operations  of  Nature  and  the  worthlessness 
of  the  divinities  of  Olympus.  Her  historians,  consid- 
ering the  orderly  course  of  political  affairs,  the  manifest 
uniformity  in  the  acts  of  men,  and  that  there  was  no 

1 


2  GEEEK  MYTHOLOGY. 

event  occurring  before  their  eyes  for  which  they  could 
not  find  an  obvious  cause  in  some  preceding  event, 
began  to  suspect  that  the  miracles  and  celestial  inter- 
ventions, with  which  the  old  annals  were  filled,'  were 
only  fictions.  They  demanded,  when  the  age  of  the 
supernatural  had  ceased,  why  oracles  had  become  mute, 
and  why  there  were  now  no  more  prodigies  in  the 
world. 

Traditions,  descending  from  immemorial  antiquity, 
and  formerly  accepted  by  pious  men  as  unquestionable 
truths,  had  filled  the  islands  of  the  Mediterranean  and 
the  conterminous  countries  with  supernatural  wonders — 
enchantresses,  sorcerers,  giants,  ogres,  harpies,  gorgons, 
centaurs,  cyclops.  The  azure  vault  was  the  floor  of 
heaven;  there  Zeus,  surrounded  by  the  gods  with  their 
wives  and  mistresses,  held  his  court,  engaged  in  pur- 
suits like  those  of  men,  and  not  refraining  from  acts  of 
human  passion  and  crime. 

A  sea-coast  broken  by  numerous  indentations,  an 
archipelago  with  some  of  the  most  lovely  islands  in  the 
world,  inspired  the  Greeks  with  a  taste  for  maritime 
life,  for  geographical  discovery,  and  colonization.  Their 
ships  wandered  all  over  the  Black  and  Mediterranean 
Seas.  The  time-honored  wonders  that  had  been  glori- 
fied in  the  "  Odyssey,"  and  sacred  in  public  faith,  were 
found  to  have  no  existence.  As  a  better  knowledge  of 
Nature  was  obtained,  the  sky  was  shown  to  be  an  illu- 
sion; it  was  discovered  that  there  is  no  Olympus,  noth- 
ing above  but  space  and  stars.  With  the  vanishing  of 
their  habitation,  the  gods  disappeared,  both  those  of 
the  Ionian  type  of  Homer  and  those  of  the  Doric  of 
Hesiod. 

But  this  did  not  take  place  without  resistance.  At 
first,  the  public,  and  particularly  its  religious  portion,  de- 


EFFECTS  OF  DISCOVERY  AND  CRITICISM.          3 

nounced  the  rising  doubts  as  atheism.  They  despoiled 
some  of  the  offenders  of  their  goods,  exiled  others; 
some  they  put  to  death.  They  asserted  that  what  had 
been 'believed  by  pious  men  in  the  old  times,  and  had 
stood  the  test  of  ages,  must  necessarily  be  true.  Then, 
as  the  opposing  evidence  became  irresistible,  they  were 
content  to  admit  that  these  marvels  were  allegories 
under  which  the  wisdom  of  the  ancients  had  concealed 
many  sacred  and  mysterious  things.  They  tried  to  rec- 
oncile, what  now  in  their  misgivings  they  feared  might 
be  myths,  with  their  advancing  intellectual  state.  But 
their  efforts  were  in  vain,  for  there  are  predestined 
phases  through  which  on  sjich  an  occasion  public  opin- 
ion must  pass.  What  it  has  received  with  veneration  it 
begins  to  doubt,  then  it  offers  new  interpretations,  then 
subsides  into  dissent,  and  ends  with  a  rejection  of  the 
whole  as  a  mere  fable. 

In  their  secession  the  philosophers  and  historians 
were  followed  by  the  poets.  Euripides  incurred  the 
odium  of  heresy.  ^.-Eschylus  narrowly  escaped  being 
stoned  to  death  for  blasphemy.  But  the  frantic  efforts 
of  those  who  are  interested  in  supporting  delusions 
must  always  end  in  defeat.  The  demoralization  resist- 
lessly  extended  through  every  branch  of  literature,  until 
at  length  it  reached  the  common  people. 

Greek  philosophical  criticism  had  lent  its  aid  to 
Greek  philosophical  discovery  in  this  destruction  of  the 
national  faith.  It  sustained  by  many  arguments  the 
wide-spreading  unbelief.  It  compared  the  doctrines  of 
the  different  schools  with  each  other,  and  showed  from 
their  contradictions  that  man  has  no  criterion  of  truth; 
that,  since  his  ideas  of  what  is  good  and  what  is  evil 
differ  according  to  the  country  in  which  he  lives,  they 
can  have  no  foundation  in  Nature,  but  must  be  alto- 


4  THE  PERSIAN  EMPIRE. 

gether.the  result  of  education;  that  right  and  wrong 
are  nothing  more  than  fictions  created  by  society  for  its 
own  purposes.  In  Athens,  some  of  the  more  advanced 
classes  had  reached  such  a  pass  that  they  not  only  denied 
the  unseen,  the  supernatural,  they  even  affirmed  that  the 
world  is  only  a  day-dream,  a  phantasm,  and  that  nothing 
at  all  exists. 

The  topographical  configuration  of  Greece  gave  an 
impress  to  her  political  condition.  It  divided  her  people 
into  distinct  communities  having  conflicting  interests, 
and  made  them  incapable  of  centralization.  Incessant 
domestic  wars  between  the  rival  states  checked  her  ad- 
vancement. She  was  poor,  her  leading  men  had  be- 
come corrupt.  They  were  ever  ready  to  barter  patriotic 
considerations  for  foreign  gold,  to  sell  themselves  for 
Persian  bribes.  Possessing  a  perception  of  the  beauti- 
ful as  manifested  in  sculpture  and  architecture  to  a 
degree  never  attained  elsewhere  either  before  or  since, 
Greece  had  lost  a  practical  appreciation  of  the  Good 
and  the  True. 

While  European  Greece,  full  of  ideas  of  liberty  and 
independence,  rejected  the  sovereignty  of  Persia,  Asiatic 
Greece  acknowledged  it  without  reluctance.  At  that 
time  the  Persian  Empire  in  territorial  extent  was  equal 
to  half  of  modern  Europe.  It  touched  the  waters  of 
the  Mediterranean,  the  ^Egean,  the  Black,  the  Caspian, 
the  Indian,  the  Persian,  the  Eed  Seas.  Through  its 
territories  there  flowed  six  of  the  grandest  rivers  in  the 
world — the  Euphrates,  the  Tigris,  the  Indus,  the  Jax- 
artes,  the  Oxus,  the  Nile,  each  more  than  a  thousand 
miles  in  length.  Its  surface  reached  from  thirteen  hun- 
dred feet  below  the  sea-level  to  twenty  thousand  feet 
above.  It  yielded,  therefore,  every  agricultural  prod- 
uct. Its  mineral  wealth  was  boundless.  It  inherited  the 


THE  PERSIAN  EMPIRE.  5 

prestige  of  the  Median,  the  Babylonian,  the  Assyrian, 
the  Chaldean  Empires,  whose  annals  reached  back 
through  more  than  twenty  centuries. 

Persia  had  always  looked  upon  European  Greece 
as  politically  insignificant,  for  it  had  scarcely  half  the 
territorial  extent  of  one  of  her  satrapies.  Her  expedi- 
tions for  compelling  its  obedience  had,  however,  taught 
her  the  military  qualities  of  its  people.  In  her  forces 
were  incorporated  Greek  mercenaries,  esteemed  the  very 
best  of  her  troops.  She  did  not  hesitate  sometimes  to 
give  the  command  of  her  armies  to  Greek  generals,  of 
her  fleets  to  Greek  captains.  In  the  political  convul- 
sions through  which  she  had  passed,  Greek  soldiers  had 
often  been  used  by  her  contending  chiefs.  These  mili- 
tary operations  were  attended  by  a  momentous  result. 
They  revealed,  to  the  quick  eye  of  these  warlike  mer- 
cenaries, the  political  weakness  of  the  empire  and  the 
possibility  of  reaching  its  centre.  After  the  death  of 
Cyprus  on  the  battle-field  of  Cunaxa,  it  was  demon- 
strated, by  the  immortal  retreat  of  the  ten  thousand 
under  Xenophon,  that  a  Greek  army  could  force  its  way 
to  and  from  the  heart  of  Persia. 

That  reverence  for  the  military  abilities  of  Asiatic 
generals,  so  profoundly  impressed  on  the  Greeks  by 
such  engineering  exploits  as  the  bridging  of  the  Helles- 
pont, and  the  cutting  of  the  isthmus  at  Mount  Athos  by 
Xerxes,  had  been  obliterated  at  Salamis,  Platea,  Mycale. 
To  plunder  rich  Persian  provinces  had  become  an  ir- 
resistible temptation.  Such  was  the  expedition  of  Ages- 
ilaus,  the  Spartan  king,  whose  brilliant  successes  were, 
however,  checked  by  the  Persian  government  resorting 
to  its  time-proved  policy  of  bribing  the  neighbors  of 
Sparta  to  attack  her.  "  I  have  been  conquered  by 
thirty  thousand  Persian  archers,"  bitterly  exclaimed 
3 


(}  INVASION  OF  PERSIA  BY  GREECE. 

Agesilaus,  as  he  reembarked,  alluding  to  the  Persian 
coin,  the  Daric,  which  was  stamped  with  the  image  of 
an  archer. 

At  length  Philip,  the  King  of  Macedon,  projected  a 
renewal  of  these  attempts,  under  a  far  more  formidable 
organization,  and  with  a  grander  object.  He  managed 
to  have  himself  appointed  captain-general  of  all  Greece, 
not  for  the  purpose  of  a  mere  foray  into  the  Asiatic 
satrapies,  but  for  the  overthrow  of  the  Persian  dynasty 
in  the  very  centre  of  its  power.  Assassinated  while  his 
preparations  were  incomplete,  he  was  succeeded  by  his 
son  Alexander,  then  a  youth.  A  general  assembly  of 
Greeks  at  Corinth  had  unanimously  elected  him  in  his 
father's  stead.  There  were  some  disturbances  in  II- 
lyria;  Alexander  had  to  march  his  army  as  far  north  as 
the  Danube  to  quell  them.  During  his  absence  the 
Thebans  with  some  others  conspired  against  him.  On 
his  return  he  took  Thebes  by  assault.  He  massacred 
six  thousand  of  its  inhabitants,  sold  thirty  thousand  for 
slaves,  and  utterly  demolished  the  city.  The  military 
wisdom  of  this  severity  was  apparent  in  his  Asiatic  cam- 
paign. He  was  not  troubled  by  any  revolt  in  his  rear. 

In  the  spring  B.  c.  334  Alexander  crossed  the  Hel- 
lespont into  Asia.  His  army  consisted  of  thirty-four 
thousand  foot  and  four  thousand  horse.  He  had  with 
him  only  seventy  talents  in  money.  He  marched  di- 
rectly on  the  Persian  army,  which,  vastly  exceeding  him 
in  strength,  was  holding  the  line  of  the  Granicus.  He 
forced  the  passage  of  the  river,  routed  the  enemy,  and 
the  possession  of  all  Asia  Minor,  with  its  treasures,  was 
the  fruit  of  the  victory.  The  remainder  of  that  year 
he  spent  in  the  military  organization  of  the  conquered 
provinces.  Meantime  Darius,  the  Persian  king,  had 


THE  MACEDONIAN  CAMPAIGN.  7 

advanced  an  army  of  six  hundred  thousand  men  to  pre- 
vent the  passage  of  the  Macedonians  into  Syria.  In  a 
battle  that  ensued  among  the  mountain-defiles  at  Issus, 
the  Persians  were  again  overthrown.  So  great  was  the 
slaughter  that  Alexander,  and  Ptolemy,  one  of  his  gen- 
erals, crossed  over  a  ravine  choked  with  dead  bodies. 
It  was  estimated  that  the  Persian  loss  was  not  less  than 
ninety  thousand  foot  and  ten  thousand  horse.  The 
royal  pavilion  fell  into  the  conqueror's  hands,  and  with 
it  the  wife  and  several  of  the  children  of  Darius.  Syria 
was  thus  added  to  the  Greek  conquests.  In  Damascus 
were  found  many  of  the  concubines  of  Darius  and  his 
chief  officers,  together  with  a  vast  treasure. 

Before  venturing  into  the  plains  of  Mesopotamia 
for  the  final  struggle,  Alexander,  to  secure  his  rear  and 
preserve  his  communications  with  the  sea,  marched 
southward  down  the  Mediterranean  coast,  reducing  the 
cities  in  his  way.  In  his  speech  before  the  council  of 
war  after  Issus,  he  told  his  generals  that  they  must  not 
pursue  Darius  with  Tyre  unsubdued,  and  Persia  in  pos- 
session of  Egypt  and  Cyprus,  for,  if  Persia  should  regain 
her  seaports,  she  would  transfer  the  war  into  Greece, 
and  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  for  him  to  be  sov- 
ereign at  sea.  With  Cyprus  and  Egypt  in  his  posses- 
sion he  felt  no  solicitude  about  Greece.  The  siege  of 
Tyre  cost  him  more  than  half  a  year.  In  revenge 
for  this  delay,  he  crucified,  it  is  said,  two  thousand  of 
his  prisoners.  Jerusalem  voluntarily  surrendered,  and 
therefore  was  treated  leniently:  but  the  passage  of  the 
Macedonian  army  into  Egypt  being  obstructed  at  Gaza, 
the  Persian  governor  of  which,  Betis,  made  a  most  ob- 
stinate defense,  that  place,  after  a  siege  of  two  months, 
was  carried  by  assault,  ten  thousand  of  its  men  were 
massacred,  and  the  rest,  with  their  wives  and  children, 


8  CONQUEST  OF  EGYPT. 

sold  into  slavery.  Betis  himself  was  dragged  alive 
round  the  city  at  the  chariot-wheels  of  the  conqueror. 
There  was  now  no  further  obstacle.  The  Egyptians, 
who  detested  the  Persian  rule,  received  their  invader 
with  open  arms.  He  organized  the  country  in  his  own 
interest,  intrusting  all  its  military  commands  to  Mace- 
donian officers,  and  leaving  the  civil  government  in  the 
hands  of  native  Egyptians. 

While  preparations  for  the  final  campaign  were 
being  made,  he  undertook  a  journey  to  the  temple  of 
Jupiter  Ammon,  which  was  situated  in  an  oasis  of  the 
Libyan  Desert,  at  a  distance  of  two  hundred  miles.  The 
oracle  declared  him  to  be  a  son  of  that  god  who,  under 
the  form  of  a  serpent,  had  beguiled  Olympias,  his 
mother.  Immaculate  conceptions  and  celestial  descents 
were  so  currently  received  in  those  days,  that  whoever 
had  greatly  distinguished  himself  in  the  affairs  of  men 
was  thought  to  be  of  supernatural  lineage.  Even  in 
Eome,  centuries  later,  no  one  could  with  safety  have 
denied  that  the  city  owed  its  founder,  Eomulus,  to  an 
accidental  meeting  of  the  god  Mars  with  the  virgin 
Rhea  Sylvia,  as  she  went  with  her  pitcher  for  water  to 
the  spring.  The  Egyptian  disciples  of  Plato  would 
have,  looked  with  anger  on  those  who  rejected  the 
legend  that  Perictione,  the  mother  of  that  great  phi- 
losopher, a  pure  virgin,  had  suffered  an  immaculate 
conception  through  the  influences  of  Apollo,  and  that 
the  god  had  declared  to  Ariston,  to  whom  she  was  be- 
trothed, the  parentage  of  the  child.  When  Alexander 
issued  his  letters,  orders,  and  decrees,  styling  himself 
"  King  Alexander,  the  son  of  Jupiter  Ammon,"  they 
came  to  the  inhabitants  of  Egypt  and  Syria  with  an 
authority  that  now  can  hardly  be  realized.  The  free- 
thinking  Greeks,  however,  put  on  such  a  supernatural 


GREEK  CONQUEST  OF   PERSIA.  9 

pedigree  its  proper  value.  Olympias,  who,  of  course, 
better  than  all  others  knew  the  facts  of  the  case,  used 
jestingly  to  say,  that  "  she  wished  Alexander  would 
cease  from  incessantly  embroiling  her  with  Jupiter's 
wife."  Arrian,  the  historian  of  the  Macedonian  expe- 
dition, observes,  "  I  cannot  condemn  him  for  endeavor- 
ing to  draw  his  subjects  into  the  belief  of  his  divine 
origin,  nor  can  I  be  induced  to  think  it  any  great  crime, 
for  it  is  very  reasonable  to  imagine  that  he  intended  no 
more  by  it  than  merely  to  procure  the  greater  authority 
among  his  soldiers." 

All  things  being  thus  secured  in  his  rear,  Alexander, 
having  returned  into  Syria,  directed  the  march  of  his 
army,  now  consisting  of  fifty  thousand  veterans,  east- 
ward. After  crossing  the  Euphrates,  he  kept  close  to 
the  Masian  hills,  to  avoid  the  intense  heat  of  the  more 
southerly  Mesopotamian  plains;  more  abundant  forage 
could  also  thus  be  procured  for  the  cavalry.  On  the 
left  bank  of  the  Tigris,  near  Arbela,  he  encountered 
the  great  army  of  eleven  hundred  thousand  men  brought 
up  by  Darius  from  Babylon.  The  death  of  the  Persian 
monarch,  which  soon  followed  the  defeat  he  suffered, 
left  the  Macedonian  general  master  of  all  the  countries 
from  the  Danube  to  the  Indus.  Eventually  he  extended 
his  conquest  to  the  Ganges.  The  treasures  he  seized 
are  almost  beyond  belief.  At  Susa  alone  he  found — so 
Arrian  says — fifty  thousand  talents  in  money. 

The  modern  military  student  cannot  look  upon  these 
wonderful  campaigns  without  admiration.  The  passage 
of  the  Hellespont;  the  forcing  of  the  Granicus;  the 
winter  spent  in  a  political  organization  of  conquered 
Asia  Minor;  the  march  of  the  right  wing  and  centre  of 
the  army  along  the  Syrian  Mediterrnean  coast;  the  en- 
gineering difficulties  overcome  at  the  siege  of  Tyre;  the 


10  EVENTS  OF  THE  CAMPAIGNS. 

storming  of  Gaza;  the  isolation  of  Persia  from  Greece; 
the  absolute  exclusion  of  her  navy  from  the  Mediter- 
ranean; the  check  on  all  her  attempts  at  intriguing  with 
or  bribing  Athenians  or  Spartans,  heretofore  so  often 
resorted  to  with  success;  the  submission  of  Egypt; 
another  winter  spent  in  the  political  organization  of 
that  venerable  country;  the  convergence  of  the  whole 
army  from  the  Black  and  Ked  Seas  toward  the  nitre- 
covered  plains  of  Mesopotamia  in  the  ensuing  spring; 
the  passage  of  the  Euphrates  fringed  with  its  weeping- 
willows  at  the  broken  bridge  of  Thapsacus;  the  crossing 
of  the  Tigris;  the  nocturnal  reconnaissance  before  the 
great  and  memorable  battle  of  Arbela;  the  oblique  move- 
ment on  the  field;  the  piercing  of  the  enemy's  centre — 
a  manoeuvre  destined  to  be  repeated  many  centuries  sub- 
sequently at  Austerlitz;  the  energetic  pursuit  of  the 
Persian  monarch;  these  are  exploits  not  surpassed  by 
any  soldier  of  later  times. 

A  prodigious  stimulus  was  thus  given  to  Greek  in- 
tellectual activity.  There  were  men  who  had  marched 
with  the  Macedonian  army  from  the  Danube  to  the 
Nile,  from  the  Nile  to  the  Ganges.  They  had  felt 
the  hyperborean  blasts  of  the  countries  beyond  the 
Black  Sea,  the  simooms  and  sand-tempests  of  the  Egyp- 
tian deserts.  They  had  seen  the  Pyramids  which  had 
already  stood  for  twenty  centuries,  the  hieroglyph- 
covered  obelisks  of  Luxor,  avenues  of  silent  and  mys- 
terious sphinxes,  colossi  of  monarchs  who  reigned  in 
the  morning  of  the  world.  In  the  halls  of  Esar-haddon 
they  had  stood  before  the  thrones  of  grim  old  Assyrian 
kings,  guarded  by  winged  bulls.  In  Babylon  there  still 
remained  its  walls,  once  more  than  sixty  miles  in  com- 
pass, and,  after  the  ravages  of  three  centuries  and  three 
conquerors,  still  more  than  eighty  feet  in  height;  there 


EFFECTS  ON  THE  GREEK  ARMY.       H 

were  still  the  ruins  of  the  temple  of  cloud-encompassed 
Bel,  on  its  top  was  planted  the  observatory  wherein  the 
weird  Chaldean  astronomers  had  held  nocturnal  com- 
munion with  the  stars;  still  there  were  vestiges  of  the 
two  palaces  with  their  hanging  gardens  in  which  were 
great  trees  growing  in  mid-air,  and  the  wreck  of  the 
hydraulic  machinery  that  had  supplied  them  with  water 
from  the  river.  Into  the  artificial  lake  with  its  vast 
apparatus  of  aqueducts  and  sluices  the  melted  snows  of 
the  Armenian  mountains  found  their  way,  and  were 
confined  in  their  course  through  the  city  by  the  em- 
bankments of  the  Euphrates.  Most  wonderful  of  all, 
perhaps,  was  the  tunnel  under  the  river-bed. 

If  Chaldea,  Assyria,  Babylon,  presented  stupendous 
and  venerable  antiquities  reaching  far  back  into  the 
night  of  time,  Persia  was  not  without  her  wonders  of  a 
later  date.  The  pillared  halls  of  Persepolis  were  filled 
with  miracles  of  art — carvings,  sculptures,  enamels, 
alabaster  libraries,  obelisks,  sphinxes,  colossal  bulls. 
Ecbatana,  the  cool  summer  retreat  of  the  Persian  kings, 
was  defended  by  seven  encircling  walls  of  hewn  and 
polished  blocks,  the  interior  ones  in  succession  of  in- 
creasing height,  and  of  different  colors,  in  astrological 
accordance  with  the  seven  planets.  The  palace  was 
roofed  with  silver  tiles,  its  beams  were  plated  with  gold. 
At  midnight,  in  its  halls  the  sunlight  was  rivaled  by 
many  a  row  of  naphtha  cressets.  A  paradise — that  lux- 
ury of  the  monarchs  of  the  East — was  planted  in  the 
midst  of  the  city.  The  Persian  Empire,  from  the  Hel- 
lespont to  the  Indus,  was  truly  the  garden  of  the  world. 

I  have  devoted  a  few  pages  to  the  story  of  these 
marvelous  campaigns,  for  the  military  talent  they  fos- 
tered led  to  the  establishment  of  the  mathematical  and 


12       EFFECTS  ON  THE  GREEK  ARMY. 

practical  schools  of  Alexandria,  the  true  origin  of  sci- 
ence. We  trace  back  all  our  exact  knowledge  to  the 
Macedonian  campaigns.  Humboldt  has  well  observed, 
that  an  introduction  to  new  and  grand  objects  of  Na- 
ture enlarges  the  human  mind.  The  soldiers  of  Alex- 
ander and  the  hosts  of  his  camp-followers  encountered 
at  every  march  unexpected  and  picturesque  scenery. 
Of  all  men,  the  Greeks  were  the  most  observant,  the 
most  readily  and  profoundly  impressed.  Here  there 
were  interminable  sandy  plains,  there  mountains  whose 
peaks  were  lost  above  the  clouds.  In  the  deserts  were 
mirages,  on  the  hill-sides  shadows  of  fleeting  clouds 
sweeping  over  the  forests.  They  were  in  a  land  of 
amber-colored  date-palms  and  cypresses,  of  tamarisks, 
green  myrtles,  and  oleanders.  At  Arbela  they  had 
fought  against  Indian  elephants;  in  the  thickets  of 
the  Caspian  they  had  roused  from  his  lair  the  lurking 
royal  tiger.  They  had  seen  animals  which,  compared 
with  those  of  Europe,  were  not  only  strange,  but  co- 
lossal— the  rhinoceros,  the  hippopotamus,  the  camel, 
the  crocodiles  of  the  Nile  and  the  Ganges.  They  had 
encountered  men  of  many  complexions  and  many  cos- 
tumes: the  swarthy  Syrian,  the  olive-colored  Persian, 
the  black  African.  Even  of  Alexander  himself  it  is  re- 
lated that  on  his  death-bed  he  caused  his  admiral,  Near- 
chus,  to  sit  by  his  side,  and  found  consolation  in  listen- 
ing to  the  adventures  of  that  sailor — the  story  of  his 
voyage  from  the  Indus  up  the  Persian  Gulf.  The  con- 
queror had  seen  with  astonishment  the  ebbing  and  flow- 
ing of  the  tides.  He  had  built  ships  for  the  exploration 
of  the  Caspian,  supposing  that  it  and  the  Black  Sea 
might  be  gulfs  of  a  great  ocean,  such  as  Nearchus  had 
discovered  the  Persian  and  Eed  Seas  to  be.  He  had 
formed  a  resolution  that  his  fleet  should  attempt  the 


INTELLECTUAL  CONDITION  OF  PERSIA.         13 

circumnavigation  of  Africa,  and  come  into  the  Mediter- 
ranean through  the  Pillars  of  Hercules — a  feat  which,  it 
was  affirmed,  had  once  been  accomplished  by  the  Pha- 
raohs. 

Not  only  her  greatest  soldiers,  but  also  her  greatest 
philosophers,  found  in  the  conquered  empire  much  that 
might  excite  the  admiration  of  Greece.  Callisthenes 
obtained  in  Babylon  a  series  of  Chaldean  astronomical 
observations  ranging  back  through  1,903  years;  these 
he  sent  to  Aristotle.  Perhaps,  since  they  were  on  burnt 
bricks,  duplicates  of  them  may  be  recovered  by  modern 
research  in  the  clay  libraries  of  the  Assyrian  kings. 
Ptolemy,  the  Egyptian  astronomer,  possessed  a  Babylo- 
nian record  of  eclipses,  going  back  747  years  before  our 
era.  Long-continued  and  close  observations  were  neces- 
sary, before  some  of  these  astronomical  results  that  have 
reached  our  times  could  have  been  ascertained.  Thus 
the  Babylonians  had  fixed  the  length  of  a  tropical  year 
within  twenty-five  seconds  of  the  truth;  their  estimate  of 
the  sidereal  year  was  barely  two  minutes  in  excess.  They 
had  detected  the  procession  of  the  equinoxes.  They 
knew  the  causes  of  eclipses,  and,  by  the  aid  of  their  cycle 
called  Saros,  could  predict  them.  Their  estimate  of  the 
value  of  that  cycle,  which  is  more  than  6,585  days,  was 
within  nineteen  and  a  half  minutes  of  the  truth. 

Such  facts  furnish  incontrovertible  proof  of  the  pa- 
tience and  skill  with  which  astronomy  had  been  culti- 
vated in  Mesopotamia,  and  that,  with  very  inadequate 
instrumental  means,  it  had  reached  no  inconsiderable 
perfection.  These  old  observers  had  made  a  catalogue 
of  the  stars,  had  divided  the  zodiac  into  twelve  signs; 
they  had  parted  the  day  into  twelve  hours,  the  night 
into  twelve.  They  had,  as  Aristotle  says,  for  a  long 
time  devoted  themselves  to  observations  of  star-occulta- 


14:      •  INTELLECTUAL  CONDITION  OP  PERSIA. 

tions  by  the  moon.  They  had  correct  views  of  the 
structure  of  the  solar  system,  and  knew  the  order  of 
emplacement  of  the  planets.  They  constructed  sun- 
dials, clepsydras,  astrolabes,  gnomons. 

Not  without  interest  do  we  still  look  on  specimens 
of  their  method  of  printing.  "Upon  a  revolving  roller 
they  engraved,  in  cuneiform  letters,  their  records,  and, 
running  this  over  plastic  clay  formed  into  blocks,  pro- 
duced ineffaceable  proofs.  From  their  tile-libraries 
we  are  still  to  reap  a  literary  and  historical  harvest. 
They  were  not  without  some  knowledge  of  optics.  The 
convex  lens  found  at  Nimroud  shows  that  they  were 
not  unacquainted  with  magnifying  instruments.  In 
arithmetic  they  had  detected  the  value  of  position  in 
the  digits,  though  they  missed  the  grand  Indian  inven- 
tion of  the  cipher. 

What  a  spectacle  for  the  conquering  Greeks,  who, 
up  to  this  time,  had  neither  experimented  nor  observed! 
They  had  contented  themselves  with  mere  meditation 
and  useless  speculation. 

But  Greek  intellectual  development,  due  thus  in 
part  to  a  more  extended  view  of  Nature,  was  powerful- 
ly aided  by  the  knowledge  then  acquired  of  the  religion 
of  the  conquered  country.  The  idolatry  of  Greece  had 
always  been  a  horror  to  Persia,  who,  in  her  invasions, 
had  never  failed  to  destroy  the  temples  and  insult  the 
fanes  of  the  bestial  gods.  The  impunity  with  which 
these  sacrileges  had  been  perpetrated  had  made  a  pro- 
found impression,  and  did  no  little  to  undermine  Hel- 
lenic faith.  But  now  the  worshiper  of  the  vile  Olym- 
pian divinities,  whose  obscene  lives  must  have  been 
shocking  to  every  pious  man,  was  brought  in  contact 
with  a  grand,  a  solemn,  a  consistent  religious  system, 
having  its  foundation  on  a  philosophical  basis.  Persia, 


ITS  BELIGIOUS  CONDITION.  15 

as  is  the  case  with  all  empires  of  long  duration,  had 
passed  through  many  changes  of  religion.  She  had  fol- 
lowed the  Monotheism  of  Zoroaster;  had  then  accepted 
Dualism,  and  exchanged  that  for  Magianism.  At  the 
time  of  the  Macedonian  expedition,  she  recognized  one 
universal  Intelligence,  the  Creator,  Preserver,  and  Gov- 
ernor of  all  tilings,  the  most  holy  essence  of  truth,  the 
giver  of  all  good.  He  was  not  to  be  represented  by 
any  image,  or  any  graven  form.  And,  since,  in  every 
thing  here  below,  we  see  the  resultant  of  two  opposing 
forces,  under  him  were  two  coequal  and  coeternal  prin- 
ciples, represented  by  the  imagery  of  Light  and  Dark- 
ness. These  principles  are  in  never-ending  conflict. 
The  world  is  their  battle-ground,  man  is  their  prize. 

In  the  old  legends  of  Dualism,  the  Evil  Spirit  was 
said  to  have  sent  a  serpent  to  ruin  the  paradise  which 
the  Good  Spirit  had  made.  These  legends  became 
known  to  the  Jews  during  their  Babylonian  captivity. 

The  existence  of  a  principle  of  evil  is  the  necessary 
incident  of  the  existence  of  a  principle  of  good,  as  a 
shadow  is  the  necessary  incident  of  the  presence  of 
light.  In  this  manner  could  be  explained  the  occur- 
rence of  evil  in  a  world,  the  maker  and  ruler  of  which 
is  supremely  good.  Each  of  the  personified  principles 
of  light  and  darkness,  Ormuzd  and  Ahriman,  had  his 
subordinate  angels,  his  counselors,  his  armies.  It  is 
the  duty  of  a  good  man  to  cultivate  truth,  purity,  and 
industry.  He  may  look  forward,  when  this  life  is  over, 
to  a  life  in  another  world,  and  trust  to  a  resurrection  of 
the  body,  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  a  conscious 
future  existence. 

In  the  later  years  of  the  empire,  the  principles  of 
Magianism  had  gradually  prevailed  more  and  more  over 
those  of  Zoroaster.  Magianism  was  essentially  a  wor- 


16  DEATH  OF  ALEXANDER. 

ship  of  the  elements.  Of  these,  fire  was  considered  as 
the  most  worthy  representative  of  the  Supreme  Being. 
On  altars  erected,  not  in  temples,  but  under  the  blue 
canopy  of  the  sky,  perpetual  fires  were  kept  burning, 
and  the  rising  sun  was  regarded  as  the  noblest  object  of 
human  adoration.  In  the  society  of  Asia,  nothing  is 
visible  but  the  monarch;  in  the  expanse  of  heaven,  all 
objects  vanish  in  presence  of  the  sun. 

Prematurely  cut  off  in  the  midst  of  many  great  pro- 
jects, Alexander  died  at  Babylon  before  he  had  com- 
pleted his  thirty-third  year  (B.  c.  323).  There  was  a 
suspicion  that  he  had  been  poisoned.  His  temper  had 
become  so  unbridled,  his  passion  so  ferocious,  that  his 
generals  and  even  his  intimate  friends  lived  in  contin- 
ual dread.  Clitus,  one  of  the  latter,  he  in  a  moment  of 
fury  had  stabbed  to  the  heart.  Callisthenes,  the  inter- 
medium between  himself  and  Aristotle,  he  had  caused 
to  be  hanged,  or,  as  was  positively  asserted  by  some 
who  knew  the  facts,  had  had  him  put  upon  the  rack  and 
then  crucified.  It  may  have  been  in  self-defense  that 
the  conspirators  resolved  on  his  assassination.  But 
surely  it  was  a  calumny  to  associate  the  name  of  Aris- 
totle with  this  transaction.  He  would  have  rather  borne 
the  worst  that  Alexander  could  inflict,  than  have  joined 
in  the  perpetration  of  so  great  a  crime. 

A  scene  of  confusion  and  bloodshed  lasting  many 
years  ensued,  nor  did  it  cease  even  after  the  Macedonian 
generals  had  divided  the  empire.  Among  its  vicissi- 
tudes one  incident  mainly  claims  our  attention.  Ptole- 
my, who  was  a  son  of  King  Philip  by  Arsinoe,  a  beauti- 
ful concubine,  and  who  in  his  boyhood  had  been  driven 
into  exile  with  Alexander,  when  they  incurred  their 
father's  displeasure,  who  had  been  Alexander's  com- 


FOUNDATION  OF  ALEXANDRIA.  if 

rade  in  many  of  his  battles  and  all  his  campaigns,  be- 
came governor  and  eventually  king  of  Egypt. 

At  the  siege  of  Rhodes,  Ptolemy  had  been  of  such 
signal  service  to  its  citizens  that  in  gratitude  they  paid 
divine  honors  to  him,  and  saluted  him  with  the  title  of 
Soter  (the  Savior).  By  that  designation — Ptolemy 
Soter — he  is  distinguished  from  succeeding  kings  of  the 
Macedonian  dynasty  in  Egypt. 

He  established  his  seat  of  government  not  in  any  of 
the  old  capitals  of  the  country,  but  in  Alexandria.  At 
the  time  of  the  expedition  to  the  temple  of  Jupiter 
Ammon,  the  Macedonian  conqueror  had  caused  the 
foundations  of  that  city  t&  be  laid,  foreseeing  that  it 
might  be  made  the  commercial  entrepot  between  Asia 
and  Europe.  It  is  to  be  particularly  remarked  that  not 
only  did  Alexander  himself  deport  many  Jews  from 
Palestine  to  people  the  city,  and  not  only  did  Ptolemy 
Soter  bring  one  hundred  thousand  more  after  his  siege 
of  Jerusalem,  but  Philadelphus,  his  successor,  redeemed 
from  slavery  one  hundred  and  ninety-eight  thousand 
of  that  people,  paying  their  Egyptian  owners  a  just 
money  equivalent  for  each.  To  all  these  Jews  the 
same  privileges  were  accorded  as  to  the  Macedonians. 
In  consequence  of  this  considerate  treatment,  vast  num- 
bers of  their  compatriots  and  many  Syrians  voluntarily 
came  into  Egypt.  To  them  the  designation  of  Helle- 
nistical  Jews  was  given.  In  like  manner,  tempted  by 
the  benign  government  of  Soter,  multitudes  of  Greeks 
sought  refuge  in  the  country,  and  the  invasions  of 
Perdiccas  and  Antigonus  showed  that  Greek  soldiers 
would  desert  from  other  Macedonian  generals  to  join 
his  armies. 

The  population  of  Alexandria  was  therefore  of  three 
distinct  nationalities:  1.  Native  Egyptians;  2.  Greeks; 


18  THE  ALEXANDRIAN  MUSEUM. 

3.  Jews — a  fact  that  has  left  an  impress  on  the  religious 
faith  of  modern  Europe. 

Greek  architects  and  Greek  engineers  had  made 
Alexandria  the  most  beautiful  city  of  the  ancient  world. 
They  had  filled  it  with  magnificent  palaces,  temples, 
theatres.  In  its  centre,  at  the  intersection  of  its  two 
grand  avenues,  which  crossed  each  other  at  right  angles, 
and  in  the  midst  of  gardens,  fountains,  obelisks,  stood 
the  mausoleum,  in  which,  embalmed  after  the  manner 
of  the  Egyptians,  rested  the  body  of  Alexander.  In  a 
funereal  journey  of  two  years  it  had  been  brought  with 
great  pomp  from  Babylon.  At  first  the  coffin  was  of 
pure  gold,  but  this  having  led  to  a  violation  of  the 
tomb,  it  was  replaced  by  one  of  alabaster.  But  not 
these,  not  even  the  great  light-house,  Pharos,  built  of 
blocks  of  white  marble  and  so  high  that  the  fire  con- 
tinually burning  on  its  top  could  be  seen  many  miles  off 
at  sea — the  Pharos  counted  as  one  of  the  seven  wonders 
of  the  world — it  is  not  these  magnificent  achievements 
of  architecture  that  arrest  our  attention;  the  true,  the 
most  glorious  monument  of  the  Macedonian  kings  of 
Egypt  is  the  Museum.  Its  influences  will  last  when 
even  the  Pyramids  have  passed  away. 

The  Alexandrian  Museum  was  commenced  by  Ptol- 
emy Soter,  and  was  completed  by  his  son  Ptolemy 
Philadelphus.  It  was  situated  in  the  Bruchion,  the  aris- 
tocratic quarter  of  the  city,  adjoinng  the  king's  palace. 
Built  of  marble,  it  was  surrounded  with  a  piazza,  in 
which  the  residents  might  walk  and  converse  together. 
Its  sculptured  apartments  contained  the  Philadelphian 
library,  and  were  crowded  with  the  choicest  statues  and 
pictures.  This  library  eventually  comprised  four  hun- 
dred thousand  volumes.  In  the  course  of  time,  probably 
on  account  of  inadequate  accommodation  for  so  many 


THE  ALEXANDRIAN  MUSEUM.  19 

books,  an  additional  library  was  established  in  the  adja- 
cent quarter  Ehacotis,  and  placed  in  the  Serapion  or 
temple  of  Serapis.  The  number  of  volumes  in  this 
library,  which  was  called  the  Daughter  of  that  in  the 
Museum,  was  eventually  three  hundred  thousand.  There 
were,  therefore,  seven  hundred  thousand  volumes  in 
these  royal  collections. 

Alexandria  was  not  merely  the  capital  of  Egypt,  it 
was  the  intellectual  metropolis  of  the  world.  Here  it 
was  truly  said  the  Genius  of  the  East  met  the  Genius 
of  the  West,  and  this  Paris  of  antiquity  became  a  focus 
of  fashionable  dissipation  and  universal  skepticism.  In 
the  allurements  of  its  bewitching  society  even  the  Jews 
forgot  their  patriotism.  They  abandoned  the  language 
of  their  forefathers,  and  adopted  Greek. 

In  the  establishment  of  the  Museum,  Ptolemy  Soter 
and  his  son  Philadelphus  had  three  objects  in  view:  1. 
The  perpetuation  of  such  knowledge  as  was  then  in 
the  world;  2.  Its  increase;  3.  Its  diffusion. 

1.  For  the  perpetuation  of  knowledge.  Orders  were 
given  to  the  chief  librarian  to  buy  at  the  king's  expense 
whatever  books  he  could.  A  body  of  transcribers  was 
maintained  in  the  Museum,  whose  duty  it  was  to  make 
correct  copies  of  such  works  as  their  owners  were  not 
disposed  to  sell.  Any  books  brought  by  foreigners  into 
Egypt  were  taken  at  once  to  the  Museum,  and,  when 
correct  copies  had  been  made,  the  transcript  was  given 
to  the  owner,  and  the  original  placed  in  the  library. 
Often  a  very  large  pecuniary  indemnity  was  paid.  Thus 
it  is  said  of  Ptolemy  Euergetes  that,  having  obtained 
from  Athens  the  works  of  Euripides,  Sophocles,  and 
^Eschylus,  he  sent  to  their  owners  transcripts,  together 
with  about  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  as  an  indemnity. 
On  his  return  from  the  Syrian  expedition  he  carried 


20  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  MUSEUM. 

back  in  triumph  all  the  Egyptian  monuments  from  Ec- 
batana  and  Susa,  which  Cambyses  and  other  invaders 
had  removed  from  Egypt.  These  he  replaced  in  their 
original  seats,  or  added  as  adornments  to  his  museums. 
When  works  were  translated  as  well  as  transcribed, 
sums  which  we  should  consider  as  almost  incredible 
were  paid,  as  was  the  case  with  the  Septuagint  transla- 
tion of  the  Bible,  ordered  by  Ptolemy  Philadelphus. 

2.  For  the  increase  of  knowledge.  One  of  the  chief 
objects  of  the  Museum  was  that  of  serving  as  the  home 
of  a  body  of  men  who  devoted  themselves  to  study,  and 
were  lodged  and  maintained  at  the  king's  expense.  Oc- 
casionally he  himself  sat  at  their  table.  Anecdotes  con- 
nected with  those  festive  occasions  have  descended  to 
our  times.  In  the  original  organization  of  the  Museum 
the  residents  were  divided  into  four  faculties — litera- 
ture, mathematics,  astronomy,  medicine.  Minor  branches 
wer  appropriately  classified  under  one  of  these  general 
heads;  thus  natural  history  was  considered  to  be  a 
branch  of  medicine.  An  officer  of  very  great  distinc- 
tion presided  over  the  establishment,  and  had  general 
charge  of  its  interests.  Demetrius  Phalareus,  perhaps 
the  most  learned  man  of  his  age,  who  had  been  gov- 
ernor of  Athens  for  many  years,  was  the  first  so  ap- 
pointed. Under  him  was  the  librarian,  an  office  some- 
times held  by  men  whose  names  have  descended  to  our 
times,  as  Eratosthenes,  and  Apollonius  Ehodius. 

In  connection  with  the  Museum  were  a  botanical  and 
a  zoological  garden.  These  gardens,  as  their  names  im- 
port, were  for  the  purpose  of  facilitating  the  study  of 
plants  and  animals.  There  was  also  an  astronomical 
observatory  containing  armillary  spheres,  globes,  solsti- 
tial and  equatorial  armils,  astrolabes,  parallactic  rules, 
and  other  apparatus  then  in  use,  the  graduation  on  the 


ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  MUSEUM.  21 

divided  instruments  being  into  degrees  and  sixths.  On 
the  floor  of  this  observatory  a  meridian  line  was  drawn. 
The  want  of  correct  means  of  measuring  time  and  tem- 
perature was  severely  felt;  the  clepsydra  of  Ctesibius 
answered  very  imperfectly  for  the  former,  the  hydrom- 
eter floating  in  a  cup  of  water  for  the  latter;  it  meas- 
ured variations  of  temperature  by  variations  of  density. 
Philadelphus,  who  toward  the  close  of  his  life  was 
haunted  with  an  intolerable  dread  of  death,  devoted 
much  of  his  time  to  the  discovery  of  an  elixir.  For 
such  pursuits  the  Museum  was  provided  with  a  chemical 
laboratory.  In  spite  of  the  prejudices  of  the  age,  and 
especially  in  spite  of  Egyptian  prejudices,  there  was  in 
connection  with  the  medical  department  an  anatomical 
room  for  the  dissection,  not  only  of  the  dead,  but  actual- 
ly of  the  living,  who  for  crimes  had  been  condemned. 

3.  For  the  diffusion  of  knowledge.  In  the  Museum 
was  given,  by  lectures,  conversation,  or  other  appropriate 
methods,  instruction  in  all  the  various  departments  of 
human  knowledge.  There  flocked  to  this  great  intel- 
lectual centre,  students  from  all  countries.  It  is  said 
that  at  one  time  not  fewer  than  fourteen  thousand  were 
in  attendance.  Subsequently  even  the  Christian  church 
received  from  it  some  of  the  most  eminent  of  its  Fathers, 
as  Clemens  Alexandrinus,  Origen,  Athanasius. 

The  library  in  the  Museum  was  burnt  during  the 
siege  of  Alexandria  by  Julius  Caesar.  To  make  amends 
for  this  great  loss,  that  collected  by  Eumenes,  King  of 
Pergamus,  was  presented  by  Mark  Antony  to  Queen 
Cleopatra.  Originally  it  was  founded  as  a  rival  to  that 
of  the  Ptolemies.  It  was  added  to  the  collection  in  the 
Serapion. 

It  remains  now  to  describe  briefly  the  philosophical 
4 


22         SCIENTIFIC  SCHOOL  OF  THE  MUSEUM. 

basis  of  the  Museum,  and  some  of  its  contributions  to 
the  stock  of  human  knowledge. 

In  memory  of  the  illustrious  founder  of  this  most 
noble  institution — an  institution  which  antiquity  de- 
lighted to  call  "  The  Divine  School  of  Alexandria  " — we 
must  mention  in  the  first  rank  his  "  History  of  the 
Campaigns  of  Alexander."  Great  as  a  soldier  and  as  a 
sovereign,  Ptolemy  Soter  added  to  his  glory  by  being 
an  author.  Time,  which  has  not  been  able  to  destroy 
the  memory  of  our  obligations  to  him,  has  dealt  unjustly 
by  his  work.  It  is  not  now  extant. 

As  might  be  expected  from  the  friendship  that  ex- 
isted between  Alexander,  Ptolemy,  and  Aristotle,  the 
Aristotelian  philosophy  was  the  intellectual  corner-stone 
on  which  the  Museum  rested.  King  Philip  had  com- 
mitted the  education  of  Alexander  to  Aristotle,  and 
during  the  Persian  campaigns  the  conqueror  contributed 
materially,  not  only  in  money,  but  otherwise,  toward 
the  "  Natural  History  "  then  in  preparation. 

The  essential  principle  of  the  Aristotelian  philosophy 
was,  to  rise  from  the  study  of  particulars  to  a  knowledge 
of  general  principles  or  universals,  advancing  to  them 
by  induction.  The  induction  is  the  more  certain  as  the 
facts  on  which  it  is  based  are  more  numerous;  its  cor- 
rectness is  established  if  it  should  enable  us  to  predict 
other  facts  until  then  unknown.  This  system  implies 
endless  toil  in  the  collection  of  facts,  both  by  experi- 
ment and  observation;  it  implies  also  a  close  meditation 
on  them.  It  is,  therefore,  essentially  a  method  of  labor 
and  of  reason,  not  a  method  -of  imagination.  The  fail- 
ures that  Aristotle  himself  so  often  exhibits  are  no 
proof  of  its  unreliability,  but  rather  of  its  trustworthi- 
ness. They  are  failures  arising  from  want  of  a  suffi- 
ciency of  facts. 


ETHICAL  SCHOOL  OP  THE  MUSEUM.  23 

Some  of  the  general  results  at  which  Aristotle  ar- 
rived are  very  grand.  Thus,  he  concluded  that  every 
thing  is  ready  to  burst  into  life,  and  that  the  various 
organic  forms  presented  to  us  hy  Nature  are  those 
which  existing  conditions  permit.  Should  the  condi- 
tions change,  the  forms  will  also  change.  Hence  there 
is  an  unbroken  chain  from  the  simple  element  through 
plants  and  animals  up  to  man,  the  different  groups 
merging  by  insensible  shades  into  each  other. 

The  inductive  philosophy  thus  established  by  Aris- 
totle is  a  method  of  great  power.  To  it  all  the  modern 
advances  in  science  are  due.  In  its  most  improved 
form  it  rises  by  inductions  from  phenomena  to  their 
causes,  and  then,  imitating  the  method  of  the  Academy, 
it  descends  by  deductions  from  those  causes  to  the 
detail  of  phenomena. 

While  thus  the  Scientific  School  of  Alexandria  was 
founded  on  the  maxims  of  one  great  Athenian  philoso- 
pher, the  Ethical  School  was  founded  on  the  maxims  of 
another,  for  Zeno,  though  a  Cypriote  or  Phoenician,  had 
for  many  years  been  established  at  Athens.  His  disci- 
ples took  the  name  of  Stoics.  His  doctrines  long  sur- 
vived him,  and,  in  times  when  there  was  no  other  con- 
solation for  man,  offered  a  support  in  the  hour  of  trial, 
and  an  unwavering  guide  in  the  vicissitudes  of  life,  not 
only  to  illustrious  Greeks,  but  also  to  many  of  the  great 
philosophers,  statesmen,  generals,  and  emperors  of  Eome. 

The  aim  of  Zeno  was,  to  furnish  a  guide  for  the  daily 
practice  of  life,  to  make  men  virtuous.  He  insisted 
that  education  is  the  true  foundation  of  virtue,  for,  if 
we  know  what  is  good,  we  shall  incline  to  do  it.  We 
must  trust  to  sense,  to  furnish  the  data  of  knowledge, 
and  reason  will  suitably  combine  them.  In  this  the 
affinity  of  Zeno  to  Aristotle  is  plainly  seen.  Every  ap- 


21  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  STOICISM. 

petite,  lust,  desire,  springs  from  imperfect  knowledge. 
Our  nature  is  imposed  upon  us  by  Fate,  but  we  must 
learn  to  control  our  passions,  and  live  free,  intelligent, 
virtuous,  in  all  things  in  accordance  with  reason.  Our 
existence  should  be  intellectual,  we  should  survey  with 
equanimity  all  pleasures  and  all  pains.  We  should 
never  forget  that  we  are  freemen,  not  the  slaves  of 
society.  "  I  possess,"  said  the  Stoic,  "  a  treasure  which 
not  all  the  world  can  rob  me  of — no  one  can  deprive 
me  of  death."  We  should  remember  that  Nature  in 
her  operations  aims  at  the  universal,  and  never  spares 
individuals,  but  uses  them  as  means  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  her  ends.  It  is,  therefore,  for  us  to  submit  to 
Destiny,  cultivating,  as  the  things  necessary  to  virtue, 
knowledge,  temperance,  fortitude,  justice.  We  must 
remember  that  every  thing  around  us  is  in  mutation; 
decay  follows  reproduction,  and  reproduction  decay,  and 
that  it  is  useless  to  repine  at  death  in  a  world  where 
every  thing  is  dying.  As  a  cataract  shows  from  year 
to  year  an  invariable  shape,  though  the  water  composing 
it  is  perpetually  changing,  so  the  aspect  of  Nature  is 
nothing  more  than  a  flow  of  matter  presenting  an  im- 
permanent form.  The  universe,  considered  as  a  whole, 
is  unchangeable.  Nothing  is  eternal  but  space,  atoms, 
force.  The  forms  of  Nature  that  we  see  are  essentially 
transitory,  they  must  all  pass  away. 

We  must  bear  in  mind  that  the  majority  of  men  are 
imperfectly  educated,  and  hence  we  must  not  needlessly 
offend  the  religious  ideas  of  our  age.  It  is  enough  for 
us  ourselves  to  know  that,  though  there  is  a  Supreme 
Power,  there  is  no  Supreme  Being.  There  is  an  in- 
visible principle,  but  not  a  personal  God,  to  whom  it 
would  be  not  so  much  blasphemy  as  absurdity  to  impute 
the  form,  the  sentiments,  the  passions  of  man.  All 


STOICISM  IN  THE  MUSEUM.  25 

revelation  is,  necessarily,  a  mere  fiction.  That  which 
men  call  chance  is  only  the  effect  of  an  unknown  cause. 
Even  of  chances  there  is  a  law.  There  is  no  such  thing 
as  Providence,  for  Nature  proceeds  under  irresistible 
laws,  and  in  this  respect  the  universe  is  only  a  vast 
automatic  engine.  The  vital  force  which  pervades  the 
world  is  what  the  illiterate  call  God.  The  modifica- 
tions through  which  all  things  are  running  take  place 
in  an  irresistible  way,  and  hence  it  may  be  said  that  the 
progress  of  the  world  is,  under  Destiny,  like  a  seed,  it 
can  evolve  only  in  a  predetermined  mode. 

The  soul  of  man  is  a  spark  of  the  vital  flame,  the 
general  vital  principle.  Like  heat,  it  passes  from  one 
to  another,  and  is  finally  reabsorbed  or  reunited  in  the 
universal  principle  from  which  it  came.  Hence  we 
must  not  expect  annihilation,  but  reunion;  and,  as  the 
tired  man  looks  forward  to  the  insensibility  of  sleep,  so 
the  philosopher,  weary  of  the  world,  should  look  for- 
ward to  the  tranquillity  of  extinction.  Of  these  things, 
however,  we  should  think  doubtingly,  since  the  mind 
can  produce  no  certain  knowledge  from  its  internal  re- 
sources alone.  It  is  unphilosophical  to  inquire  into  first 
causes;  we  must  deal  only  with  phenomena.  Above  all, 
we  must  never  forget  that  man  cannot  ascertain  absolute 
truth,  and  that  the  final  result  of  human  inquiry  into 
the  matter  is,  that  we  are  incapable  of  perfect  knowl- 
edge; that,  even  if  the  truth  be  in  our  possession,  we 
cannot  be  sure  of  it. 

What,  then,  remains  for  us?  Is  it  not  this — the  ac- 
quisition of  knowledge,  the  cultivation  of  virtue  and  of 
friendship,  the  observance  of  faith  and  truth,  an  unre- 
pining  submission  to  whatever  befalls  us,  a  life  led  in 
accordance  with  reason? 


26  PLATONISM  IN  THE  MUSEUM. 

But,  though  the  Alexandrian  Museum  was  especially 
intended  for  the  cultivation  of  the  Aristotelian  philoso- 
phy, it  must  not  be  supposed  that  other  systems  were 
excluded.  Platonism  was  not  only  carried  to  its  full 
development,  but  in  the  end  it  supplanted  Peripateti- 
cism,  and  through  the  New  Academy  left  a  permanent 
impress  on  Christianity.  The  philosophical  method  of 
Plato  was  the  inverse  of  that  of  Aristotle.  Its  start- 
ing-point was  universals,  the  very  existence  of  which 
was  a  matter  of  faith,  and  from  these  it  descended  to 
particulars,  or  details.  Aristotle,  on  the  contrary,  rose 
from  particulars  to  universals,  advancing  to  them  by 
inductions. 

Plato,  therefore,  trusted  to  the  imagination,  Aris- 
totle to  reason.  The  former  descended  from  the  de- 
composition of  a  primitive  idea  into  particulars,  the  lat- 
ter united  particulars  into  a  general  conception.  Hence 
the  method  of  Plato  was  capable  of  quickly  producing 
what  seemed  to  be  splendid,  though  in  reality  unsub- 
stantial results;  that  of  Aristotle  was  more  tardy  in  its 
operation,  but  much  more  solid.  It  implied  endless 
labor  in  the  collection  of  facts,  a  tedious  resort  to  ex- 
periment and  observation,  the  application  of  demonstra- 
tion. The  philosophy  of  Plato  is  a  gorgeous  castle  in 
the  air;  that  of  Aristotle  a  solid  structure,  laboriously, 
and  with  many  failures,  founded  on  the  solid  rock. 

An  appeal  to  the  imagination  is  much  more  alluring 
than  the  employment  of  reason.  In  the  intellectual  de- 
cline of  Alexandria,  indolent  methods  were  preferred  to 
laborious  observation  and  severe  mental  exercise.  The 
schools  of  Neo-Platonism  were  crowded  with  specula- 
tive mystics,  such  as  Ammonius  Saccas  and  Plotinus. 
These  took  the  place  of  the  severe  geometers  of  the  old 
Museum. 


PHYSICAL  SCIENCE  IN  THE  MUSEUM.  2Y 

The  Alexandrian  school  offers  the  first  example  of 
that  system  which,  in  the  hands  of  modern  physicists, 
has  led  to  such  wonderful  results.  It  rejected  imagina- 
tion, and  made  its  theories  the  expression  of  facts  ob- 
tained by  experiment  and  observation,  aided  by  mathe- 
matical discussion.  It  enforced  the  principle  that  the 
true  method  of  studying  Nature  is  by  experimental  in- 
terrogation. The  researches  of  Archimedes  in  specific 
gravity,  and  the  works  of  Ptolemy  on  optics,  resemble 
our  present  investigations  in  experimental  philosophy, 
and  stand  in  striking  contrast  with  the  speculative  vaga- 
ries of  the  older  writers.  Laplace  says  that  the  only 
observation  which  the  history  of  astronomy  offers  us, 
made  by  the  Greeks  before  the  school  of  Alexandria,  is 
that  of  the  summer  solstice  of  the  year  B.  c.  432,  by 
Meton  and  Euctemon.  We  have,  for  the  first  time,  in 
that  school,  a  combined  system  of  observations  made 
with  instruments  for  the  measurement  of  angles,  and  cal- 
culated by  trigonometrical  methods.  Astronomy  then 
took  a  form  which  subsequent  ages  could  only  perfect. 

It  does  not  accord  with  the  compass  or  the  intention 
of  this  work  to  give  a  detailed  account  of  the  contribu- 
tions of  the  Alexandrian  Museum  to  the  stock  of  human 
knowledge.  It  is  sufficient  that  the  'reader  should  ob- 
tain a  general  impression  of  their  character.  For  par- 
ticulars, I  may  refer  him  to  the  sixth  chapter  of  my 
"  History  of  the  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe." 

It  has  just  been  remarked  that  the  Stoical  philoso- 
phy doubted  whether  the  mind  can  ascertain  absolute 
truth.  While  Zeno  was  indulging  in  such  doubts, 
Euclid  was  preparing  his  great  work,  destined  to  chal- 
lenge contradiction  from  the  whole  human  race.  After 
more  than  twenty-two  centuries  it  still  survives,  a  model 


28  EUCLID— ARCHIMEDES. 

of  accuracy,  perspicuity,  and  a  standard  of  exact  demon- 
stration. This  great  geometer  not  only  wrote  on  other 
mathematical  topics,  such  as  Conic  Sections  and  Porisms, 
but  there  are  imputed  to  him  treatises  on  Harmonics 
and  Optics,  the  latter  subject  being  discussed  on  the 
hypothesis  of  rays  issuing  from  the  eye  to  the  object. 

With  the  Alexandrian  mathematicians  and  physi- 
cists must  be  classed  Archimedes,  though  he  event- 
ually resided  in  Sicily.  Among  his  mathematical  works 
were  two  books  on  the  Sphere  and  Cylinder,  in  which 
he  gave  the  demonstration  that  the  solid  content  of  a 
sphere  is  two-thirds  that  of  its  circumscribing  cylinder. 
So  highly  did  he  esteem  this,  that  he  directed  the  dia- 
gram to  be  engraved  on  his  tombstone.  He  also  treated 
of  the  quadrature  of  the  circle  and  of  the  parabola;  he 
wrote  on  Conoids  and  Spheroids,  and  on  the  spiral  that 
bears  his  name,  the  genesis  of  which  was  suggested  to 
him  by  his  friend  Conon  the  Alexandrian.  As  a  mathe- 
matician, Europe  produced  no  equal  to  him  for  nearly 
two  thousand  years.  In  physical  science  he  laid  the 
foundation  of  hydrostatics;  invented  a  method  for  the 
determination  of  specific  gravities;  discussed  the  equilib- 
rium of  floating  bodies;  discovered  the  true  theory  of  the 
lever,  and  invented  a  screw,  which  still  bears  his  name, 
for  raising  the  water  of  the  Nile.  To  him  also  are  to 
be  attributed  the  endless  screw,  and  a  peculiar  form  of 
burning-mirror,  by  which,  at  the  siege  of  Syracuse,  it  is 
said  that  he  set  the  Eoman  fleet  on  fire. 

Eratosthenes,  who  at  one  time  had  charge  of  the 
library,  was  the  author  of  many  important  works. 
Among  them  may  be  mentioned  his  determination  of 
the  interval  between  the  tropics,  and  an  attempt  to  as- 
certain the  size  of  the  earth.  He  considered  the  articu- 
lation and  expansion  of  continents,  the  position  of  moun- 


ERATOSTHENES— APOLLONIUS— HIPPARCHUS.    29 

tain-chains,  the  action  of  clouds,  the  geological  submer- 
sion of  lands,  the  elevation  of  ancient  sea-beds,  the  open- 
ing of  the  Dardanelles  and  the  straits  of  Gibraltar,  and 
the  relations  of  the  Euxine  Sea.  He  composed  a  com- 
plete system  of  the  earth,  in  three  books — physical, 
mathematical,  historical — accompanied  by  a  map  of  all 
the  parts  then  known.  It  is  only  of  late  years  that  the 
fragments  remaining  of  his  "  Chronicles  of  the  Theban 
Kings"  have  been  justly  appreciated.  For  many  cen- 
turies they  were  thrown  into  discredit  by  the  authority 
of  our  existing  absurd  theological  chronology. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  adduce  the  arguments  relied 
upon  by  the  Alexandrians, to  prove  the  globular  form 
of  the  earth.  They  had  correct  ideas  respecting  the 
doctrine  of  the  sphere,  its  poles,  axis,  equator,  arctic  and 
antarctic  circles,  equinoctial  points,  solstices,  the  distri- 
bution of  climates,  etc.  I  cannot  do  more  than  mere- 
ly allude  to  the  treatises  on  Conic  Sections  and  on 
Maxima  and  Minima  by  Apollonius,  who  is  said  to  have 
been  the  first  to  introduce  the  words  ellipse  and  hyper- 
bola. In  like  manner  I  must  pass  the  astronomical 
observations  of  Aristyllus  and  Timocharis.  It  was  to 
those  of  the  latter  on  Spica  Virginis  that  Hipparchus 
was  indebted  for  his  great  discovery  of  the  precession 
of  the  equinoxes.  Hipparchus  also  determined  the  first 
inequality  of  the  moon,  the  equation  of  the  centre.  He 
adopted  the  theory  of  epicycles  and  eccentrics,  a  geo- 
metrical conception  for  the  purpose  of  resolving  the  ap- 
parent motions  of  the  heavenly  bodies  on  the  principle 
of  circular  movement.  He  also  undertook  to  make  a 
catalogue  of  the  stars  by  the  method  of  alineations — 
that  is,  by  indicating  those  that  are  in  the  same  ap- 
parent straight  line.  The  number  of  stars  so  catalogued 
was  1,080.  If  he  thus  attempted  to  depict  the  aspect 


30  THE  SYNTAXIS  OF  PTOLEMY. 

of  the  sky,  he  endeavored  to  do  the  same  for  the  surface 
of  the  earth,  by  marking  the  position  of  towns  and 
other  places  by  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude.  He 
was  the  first  to  construct  tables  of  the  sun  and  moon. 

In  the  midst  of  such  a  brilliant  constellation  of 
geometers,  astronomers,  physicists,  conspicuously  shines 
forth  Ptolemy,  the  author  of  the  great  work,  "  Syn- 
taxis,"  "  a  Treatise  on  the  Mathematical  Construction 
of  the  Heavens."  It  maintained  its  ground  for  nearly 
fifteen  hundred  years,  and  indeed  was  only  displaced  by 
the  immortal  "Principia"  of  Newton.  It  commences 
with  the  doctrine  that  the  earth  is  globular  and  fixed  in 
space,  it  describes  the  construction  of  a  table  of  chords, 
and  instruments  for  observing  the  solstices,  it  deduces 
the  obliquity  of  the  ecliptic,  it  finds  terrestrial  latitudes 
by  the  gnomon,  describes  climates,  shows  how  ordinary 
may  be  converted  into  sidereal  time,  gives  reasons  for 
preferring  the  tropical  to  the  sidereal  year,  furnishes 
the  solar  theory  on  the  principle  of  the  sun's  orbit  being 
a  simple  eccentric,  explains  the  equation  of  time,  ad- 
vances to  the  discussion  of  the  motions  of  the  moon, 
treats  of  the  first  inequality,  of  her  eclipses,  and  the 
motion  of  her  nodes.  It  then  gives  Ptolemy's  own 
great  discovery — that  which  has  made  his  name  immor- 
tal— the  discovery  of  the  moon's  eviction  or  second  in- 
equality, reducing  it  to  the  epicyclic  theory.  It  attempts 
the  determination  of  the  distances  of  the  sun  and  moon 
from  the  earth — with,  however,  only  partial  success.  It 
considers  the  precession  of  the  equinoxes,  the  discovery 
of  Hipparchus,  the  full  period  of  which  is  twenty-five 
thousand  years.  It  gives  a  catalogue  of  1,022  stars, 
treats  of  the  nature  of  the  milky-way,  and  discusses  in 
the  most  masterly  manner  the  motions  of  the  planets. 
This  point  constitutes  another  of  Ptolemy's  claims  to 


INVENTION  OP  THE  STEAM-ENGINE.  31 

scientific  fame.  His  determination  of  the  planetary 
orbits  as  accomplished  by  comparing  his  own  observa- 
tions with  those  of  former  astronomers,  among  them 
the  observations  of  Timocharis  on  the  planet  Venus. 

In  the  Museum  of  Alexandria,  Ctesibius  invented 
the  fire-engine.  His  pupil,  Hero,  improved  it  by  giving 
it  two  cylinders.  There,  too,  the  first  steam-engine 
worked.  This  also  was  the  invention  of  Hero,  and 
was  a  reaction  engine,  on  the  principle  of  the  eolipile. 
The  silence  of  the  halls  of  Serapis  was  broken  by  the 
water-clocks  of  Ctesibius  and  Apollonius,  which  drop  by 
drop  measured  time.  When  the  Roman  calendar  had 
fallen  into  such  confusion  .that  it  had  become  absolutely 
necessary  to  rectify  it,  Julius  Caesar  brought  Sosigenes 
the  astronomer  from  Alexandria.  By  his  advice  the 
lunar  year  was  abolished,  the  civil  year  regulated  en- 
tirely by  the  sun,  and  the  Julian  calendar  introduced. 

The  Macedonian  rulers  of  Egypt  have  been  blamed 
for  the  manner  in  which  they  dealt  with  the  religious 
sentiment  of  their  time.  They  prostituted  it  to  the 
purpose  of  state-craft,  finding  in  it  a  means  of  governing 
their  lower  classes.  To  the  intelligent  they  gave  phi- 
losophy. 

But  doubtless  they  defended  this  policy  by  the  ex- 
perience gathered  in  those  great  campaigns  which  had 
made  the  Greeks  the  foremost  nation  of  the  world. 
They  had  seen  the  mythological  conceptions  of  their 
ancestral  country  dwindle  into  fables;  the  wonders  with 
which  the  old  poets  adorned  the  Mediterranean  had 
been  discovered  to  be  baseless  illusions.  From  Olympus 
its  divinities  had  disappeared;  indeed,  Olympus  itself 
had  proved  to  be  a  phantom  of  the  imagination.  Hades 
had  lost  its  terrors;  no  place  could  be  found  for  it. 


32  POLICY  OF  THE  PTOLEMIES. 

From  the  woods  and  grottoes  and  rivers  of  Asia  Minor 
the  local  gods  and  goddesses  had  departed;  even  their 
devotees  began  to  doubt  whether  they  had  ever  been 
there.  If  still  the  Syrian  damsels  lamented,  in  their 
amorous  ditties,  the  fate  of  Adonis,  it  was  only  as  a  recol- 
lection, not  as  a  reality.  Again  and  again  had  Persia 
changed  her  national  faith.  For  the  revelation  of  Zoro- 
aster she  had  substituted  Dualism;  then  under  new  po- 
litical influences  she  had  adopted  Magianism.  She  had 
worshiped  fires,  and  kept  her  altars  burning  on  moun- 
tain-tops. She  had  adored  the  sun.  When  Alexander 
came,  she  was  fast  falling  into  pantheism. 

On  a  country  to  which  in  its  political  extremity  the 
indigenous  gods  have  been  found  unable  to  give  any 
protection,  a  change  of  faith  is  impending.  The  ven- 
erable divinities  of  Egypt,  to  whose  glory  obelisks  had 
been  raised  and  temples  dedicated,  had  again  and  again 
submitted  to  the  sword  of  a  foreign  conqueror.  In  the 
land  of  the  Pyramids,  the  Colossi,  the  Sphinx,  the 
images  of  the  gods  had  ceased  to  represent  living  reali- 
ties. They  had  ceased  to  be  objects  of  faith.  Others  of 
more  recent  birth  were  needful,  and  Serapis  confronted 
Osiris.  In  the  shops  and  streets  of  Alexandria  there 
were  thousands  of  Jews  who  had  forgotten  the  God  that 
had  made  his  habitation  behind  the  veil  of  the  temple. 

Tradition,  revelation,  time,  all  had  lost  their  influ- 
ence. The  traditions  of  European  mythology,  the  reve- 
lations of  Asia,  the  time-consecrated  dogmas  of  Egypt, 
all  had  passed  or  were  fast  passing  away.  And  the 
Ptolemies  recognized  how  ephemeral  are  forms  of  faith. 

But  the  Ptolemies  also  recognized  that  there  is  some- 
thing more  durable  than  forms  of  faith,  which,  like  the 
organic  forms  of  geological  ages,  once  gone,  are  clean 
gone  forever,  and  have  no  restoration,  no  return.  They 


THE  MUSEUM  AND  MODERN  SCIENCE.          33 

recognized  that  within  this  world  of  transient  delusions 
and  unrealities  there  is  a  world  of  eternal  truth. 

That  world  is  not  to  be  discovered  through  the  vain 
traditions  that  have  brought  down  to  us  the  opinions  of 
men  who  lived  in  the  morning  of  civilization,  nor  in 
the  dreams  of  mystics  who  thought  that  they  were  in- 
spired. It  is  to  be  discovered  by  the  investigations  of 
geometry,  and  by  the  practical  interrogation  of  Nature. 
These  confer  on  humanity  solid,  and  innumerable,  and 
inestimable  blessings. 

The  day  will  never  come  when  any  one  of  the  propo- 
sitions of  Euclid  will  be  denied;  no  one  henceforth 
will  call  in  question  the  globular  shape  of  the  earth,  as 
recognized  by  Eratosthenes;  the  world  will  not  permit 
the  great  physical  inventions  and  discoveries  made  in 
Alexandria  and  Syracuse  to  be  forgotten.  The  names 
of  Hipparchus,  of  Apollonius,  of  Ptolemy,  of  Archi- 
medes, will  be  mentioned  with  reverence  by  men  of 
every  religious  profession,  as  long  as  there  are  men  to 
speak. 

The  Museum  of  Alexandria  was  thus  the  birthplace 
of  modern  science.  It  is  true  that,  long  before  its  es- 
tablishment, astronomical  observations  had  been  made 
in  China  and  Mesopotamia;  the  mathematics  also  had 
been  cultivated  with  a  certain  degree  of  success  in  In- 
dia. But  in  none  of  these  countries  had  investigation 
assumed  a  connected  and  consistent  form;  in  none  was 
physical  experimentation  resorted  to.  The  character- 
istic feature  of  Alexandrian,  as  of  modern  science,  is, 
that  it  did  not  restrict  itself  to  observation,  but  relied 
on  a  practical  interrogation  of  Nature. 


CHAPTEE   II. 

THE  ORIGIN  OF  CHRISTIANITY. — ITS  TRANSFORMATION 
ON  ATTAINING  IMPERIAL  POWER. — ITS  RELATIONS 
TO  SCIENCE. 

Religious  condition  of  the  Roman  Republic. — The  adoption  of 
imperialism  leads  to  monotheism. — Christianity  spreads  over 
the  Roman  Empire. — The  circumstances  under  which  it  at- 
tained imperial  power  make  its  union  with  Paganism  a 
political  necessity. — Tertullian's  description  of  its  doctrines 
and  practices. — Debasing  effect  of  the  policy  of  Constantine 
on  it. — Its  alliance  with  the  civil  power. — Its  incompatibility 
with  science. — Destruction  of  the  Alexandrian  Library  and 
prohibition  of  philosophy. — Exposition  of  the  Augustinian 
philosophy  and  Patristic  science  generally. — The  Scriptures 
made  the  standard  of  science. 

IN  a  political  sense,  Christianity  is  the  bequest  of 
the  Eoman  Empire  to  the  world. 

At  the  epoch  of  the  transition  of  Borne  from  the 
republican  to  the  imperial  form  of  government,  all  the 
independent  nationalities  around  the  Mediterranean  Sea 
had  been  brought  under  the  control  of  that  central 
power.  The  conquest  that  had  befallen  them  in  succes- 
sion had  been  by  no  means  a  disaster.  The  perpetual 
wars  they  had  maintained  with  each  other  came  to  an 
end;  the  miseries  their  conflicts  had  engendered  were 
exchanged  for  universal  peace. 

Not  only  as  a  token  of  the  conquest  she  had  made, 
but  also  as  a  gratification  to  her  pride,  the  conquering 

34 


MONOTHEISM  IN  THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE.          35 

republic  brought  the  gods  of  the  vanquished  peoples  to 
Eome.  With  disdainful  toleration,  she  permitted  the 
worship  of  them  all.  That  paramount  authority  exer- 
cised by  each  divinity  in  his  original  seat  disappeared 
at  once  in  the  crowd  of  gods  and  goddesses  among 
whom  he  had  been  brought.  Already,  as  we  have  seen, 
through  geographical  discoveries  and  philosophical 
criticism,  faith  in  the  religion  of  the  old  days  had  been 
profoundly  shaken.  It  was,  by  this  policy  of  Eome, 
brought  to  an  end. 

The  kings  of  all  the  conquered  provinces  had  van- 
ished; in  their  stead  one  emperor  had  come.  The  gods 
also  had  disappeared.  Considering  the  connection  which 
in  all  ages  has  existed  between  political  and  religious 
ideas,  it  was  then  not  at  all  strange  that  polytheism 
should  manifest  a  tendency  to  pass  into  monotheism. 
Accordingly,  divine  honors  were  paid  at  first  to  the 
deceased  and  at  length  to  the  living  emperor. 

The  facility  .with  which  gods  were  thus  called  into 
existence  had  a  powerful  moral  effect.  The  manufac- 
ture of  a  new  one  cast  ridicule  on  the  origin  of  the  old. 
Incarnation  in  the  East  and  apotheosis  in  the  West  were 
fast  filling  Olympus  with  divinities.  In  the  East,  gods 
descended  from  heaven,  and  were  made  incarnate  in 
men;  in  the  West,  men  ascended  from  earth,  and  took 
their  seat  among  the  gods.  It  was  not  the  importation  of 
Greek  skepticism  that  made  Rome  skeptical.  The  ex- 
cesses of  religion  itself  sapped  the  foundations  of  faith. 

Not  with  equal  rapidity  did  all  classes  of  the  popula- 
tion adopt  monotheistic  views.  The  merchants  and  law- 
yers and  soldiers,  who  by  the  nature  of  their  pursuits 
are  more  familiar  with  the  vicissitudes  of  life,  and  have 
larger  intellectual  views,  were  the  first  to  be  affected, 
the  land  laborers  and  farmers  the  last. 


36  THE  RISE  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

When  the  empire  in  a  military  and  political  sense 
had  reached  its  culmination,  in  a  religious  and  social 
aspect  it  had  attained  its  height  of  immorality.  It  had 
become  thoroughly  epicurean;  its  maxim  was,  that  life 
should  be  made  a  feast,  that  virtue  is  only  the  seasoning 
of  pleasure,  and  temperance  the  means  of  prolonging  it. 
Dining-rooms  glittering  with  gold  and  incrusted  with 
gems,  slaves  in  superb  apparel,  the  fascinations  of  fe- 
male society  where  all  the  women  were  dissolute,  mag- 
nificent baths,  theatres,  gladiators,  such  were  the  objects 
of  Koman  desire.  The  conquerors  of  the  world  had  dis- 
covered that  the  only  thing  worth  worshiping  is  Force. 
By  it  all  things  might  be  secured,  all  that  toil  and  trade 
had  laboriously  obtained.  The  confiscation  of  goods  and 
lands,  the  taxation  of  provinces,  were  the  reward  of  suc- 
cessful warfare;  and  the  emperor  was  the  symbol  of  force. 
Ther  was  a  social  splendor,  but  it  was  the  phosphorescent 
corruption  of  the  ancient  Mediterranean  world. 

In  one  of  the  Eastern  provinces,  Syria,  some  persons 
in  very  humble  life  had  associated  themselves  together 
for  benevolent  and  religious  purposes.  The  doctrines 
they  held  were  in  harmony  with  that  sentiment  of  uni- 
versal brotherhood  arising  from  the  coalescence  of  the 
conquered  kingdoms.  They  were  doctrines  inculcated 
by  Jesus. 

The  Jewish  people  at  that  time  entertained  a  belief, 
founded  on  old  traditions,  that  a  deliverer  would  arise 
among  them,  who  would  restore  them  to  their  ancient 
splendor.  The  disciples  of  Jesus  regarded  him  as  this 
long-expected  Messiah.  But  the  priesthood,  believing 
that  the  doctrines  he  taught  were  prejudicial  to  their  in- 
terests, denounced  him  to  the  Koman  governor,  who,  to 
satisfy  their  clamors,  reluctantly  delivered  him  over  to 
death. 


THE  RISE  OF  CHRISTIANITY.  37 

His  doctrines  of  benevolence  and  human  brother- 
hood outlasted  that  event.  The  disciples,  instead  of 
scattering,  organized.  They  associated  themselves  on  a 
principle  of  communism,  each  throwing  into  the  com- 
mon stock  whatever  property  he  possessed,  and  all  his 
gains.  The  widows  and  orphans  of  the  community 
were  thus  supported,  the  poor  and  the  sick  sustained. 
From  this  germ  was  developed  a  new,  and  as  the  events 
proved,  all-powerful  society — the  Church;  new,  for  noth- 
ing of  the  kind  had  existed  in  antiquity;  powerful,  for 
the  local  churches,  at  first  isolated,  soon  began  to  confed- 
erate for  their  common  interest.  Through  this  organ- 
ization Christianity  achieved  all  her  political  triumphs. 

As  we  have  said,  the  military  domination  of  Rome 
had  brought  about  universal  peace,  and  had  generated 
a  sentiment  of  brotherhood  among  the  vanquished  na- 
tions. Things  were,  therefore,  propitious  for  the  rapid 
diffusion  of  the  newly-established — the  Christian — prin- 
ciple throughout  the  empire.  It  spread  from  Syria 
through  all  Asia  Minor,  and  successively  reached  Cy- 
prus, Greece,  Italy,  eventually  extending  westward  as 
far  as  Gaul  and  Britain. 

Its  propagation  was  hastened  by  missionaries  who 
made  it  known  in  all  directions.  None  of  the  ancient 
classical  philosophies  had  ever  taken  advantage  of  such 
a  means. 

Political  conditions  determined  the  boundaries  of 
the  new  religion.  Its  limits  were  eventually  those  of 
the  Roman  Empire;  Rome,  doubtfully  the  place  of  the 
death  of  Peter,  not  Jerusalem,  indisputably  the  place 
of  the  death  of  our  Savior,  became  the  religious  capital. 
It  was  better  to  have  possession  of  the  imperial  seven- 
hilled  city,  than  of  Gethsemane  and  Calvary  with  all 
their  holy  souvenirs. 
5 


38  IT  GATHERS  POLITICAL  POWER. 

For  many  years  Christianity  manifested  itself  as  a 
system  enjoining  three  things — toward  God  veneration, 
in  personal  life  purity,  in  social  life  benevolence.  In 
its  early  days  of  feebleness  it  made  proselytes  only  by 
persuasion,  but,  as  it  increased  in  numbers  and  influence, 
it  began  to  exhibit  political  tendencies,  a  disposition  to 
form  a  government  within  the  government,  an  empire 
within  the  empire.  These  tendencies  it  has  never  since 
lost.  They  are,  in  truth,  the  logical  result  of  its  de- 
velopment. The  Roman  emperors,  discovering  that  it 
was  absolutely  incompatible  with  the  imperial  system, 
tried  to  put  it  down  by  force.  This  was  in  accordance 
with  the  spirit  of  their  military  maxims,  which  had 
no  other  means  but  force  for  the  establishment  of  con- 
formity. 

In  the  winter  A.  D.  302-'3,  the  Christian  soldiers  in 
some  of  the  legions  refused  to  join  in  the  time-honored 
solemnities  for  propitiating  the  gods.  The  mutiny 
spread  so  quickly,  the  emergency  became  so  pressing, 
that  the  Emperor  Diocletian  was  compelled  to  hold  a 
council  for  the  purpose  of  determining  what  should  be 
done.  The  difficulty  of  the  position  may  perhaps  be 
appreciated  when  it  is  understood  that  the  wife  and  the 
daughter  of  Diocletian  himself  were  Christians.  He 
was  a  man  of  great  capacity  and  large  political  views;  he 
recognized  in  the  opposition  that  must  be  made  to  the 
new  party  a  political  necessity,  yet  he  expressly  enjoined 
that  there  should  be  no  bloodshed.  But  who  can  con- 
trol an  infuriated  civil  commotion?  The  church  of 
Nicomedia  was  razed  to  the  ground;  in  retaliation  the 
imperial  palace  was  set  on  fire,  an  edict  was  openly 
insulted  and  torn  down.  The  Christian  officers  in  the 
army  were  cashiered;  in  all  directions,  martyrdoms  and 
massacres  were  taking  place.  So  resistless  was  the 


THE  FIRST  CHRISTIAN  EMPEROR.  39 

march  of  events,  that  not  even  the  emperor  himself 
could  stop  the  persecution. 

It  had  now  become  evident  that  the  Christians  con- 
stituted a  powerful  party  in  the  state,  animated  with 
indignation  at  the  atrocities  they  had  suffered,  and  de- 
termined to  endure  them  no  longer.  After  the  abdica- 
tion of  Diocletian  (A.  D.  305),  Constantine,  one  of  the 
competitors  for  the  purple,  perceiving  the  advantages 
that  would  accrue  to  him  from  such  a  policy,  put  him- 
self forth  as  the  head  of  the  Christian  party.  This  gave 
him,  in  every  part  of  the  empire,  men  and  women  ready 
to  encounter  fire  and  sword  in  his  behalf;  it  gave 
him  unwavering  adherents  in  every  legion  of  the  armies. 
In  a  decisive  battle,  near  the  Milvian  bridge,  victory 
crowned  his  schemes.  The  death  of  Maximin,  and  sub- 
sequently that  of  Licinius,  removed  all  obstacles.  He 
ascended  the  throne  of  the  Caesars — the  first  Christian 
emperor. 

Place,  profit,  power — these  were  in  view  of  whoever 
now  joined  the  conquering  sect.  Crowds  of  worldly 
persons,  who  cared  nothing  about  its  religious  ideas,  be- 
came its  warmest  supporters.  Pagans  at  heart,  their 
influence  was  soon  manifested  in  the  paganization  of 
Christianity  that  forthwith  ensued.  The  emperor,  no 
better  than  they,  did  nothing  to  check  their  proceed- 
ings. But  he  did  not  personally  conform  to  the  cere- 
monial requirements  of  the  Church  until  the  close  of 
his  evil  life,  A.  D.  337. 

That  we  may  clearly  appreciate  the  modifications 
now  impressed  on  Christianity — modifications  which 
eventually  brought  it  in  conflict  with  science — we  must 
have,  as  a  means  of  comparison,  a  statement  of  what  it 
was  in  its  purer  days.  Such,  fortunately,  we  find  in 
the  "  Apology  or  Defense  of  the  Christians  against  the 


40  TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

Accusations  of  the  Gentiles,"  written  by  Tertullian,  at 
Rome,  during  the  persecution  of  Severus.  He  ad- 
dressed it,  not  to  the  emperor,  but  to  the  magistrates 
who  sat  in  judgment  on  the  accused.  It  is  a  solemn 
and  most  earnest  expostulation,  setting  forth  all  that 
could  be  said  in  explanation  of  the  subject,  a  represen- 
tation of  the  belief  and  cause  of  the  Christians  made  in 
the  imperial  city  in  the  face  of  the  whole  world,  not  a 
querulous  or  passionate  ecclesiastical  appeal,  but  a  grave 
historical  document.  It  has  ever  been  looked  upon  as 
one  of  the  ablest  of  the  early  Christian  works.  Its  date 
is  about  A.  D.  200. 

With  no  inconsiderable  skill  Tertullian  opens  his 
argument.  He  tells  the  magistrates  that  Christianity 
is  a  stranger  upon  earth,  and  that  she  expects  to  meet 
with  enemies  in  a  country  which  is  not  her  own.  She 
only  asks  that  she  may  not  be  condemned  unheard,  and 
that  Roman  magistrates  will  permit  her  to  defend  her- 
self; that  the  laws  of  the  empire  will  gather  lustre,  if 
judgment  be  passed  upon  her  after  she  has  been  tried, 
but  not  if  she  is  sentenced  without  a  hearing  of  her 
cause;  that  it  is  unjust  to  hate  a  thing  of  which  we  are 
ignorant,  even  though  it  may  be  a  thing  worthy  of  hate; 
that  the  laws  of  Rome  deal  with  actions,  not  with  mere 
names;  but  that,  notwithstanding  this,  persons  have 
been  punished  because  they  were  called  Christians,  and 
that  without  any  accusation  of  crime. 

He  then  advances  to  an  exposition  of  the  origin,  the 
nature,  and  the  effects  of  Christianity,  stating  that  it  is 
founded  on  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  which  are  the  most 
venerable  of  all  books.  He  says  to  the  magistrates: 
"  The  books  of  Moses,  in  which  God  has  inclosed,  as  in 
a  treasure,  all  the  religion  of  the  Jews,  and  consequent- 
ly all  the  Christian  religion,  reach  far  beyond  the  oldest 


TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY.  41 

you  have,  even  beyond  all  your  public  monuments,  the 
establishment  of  your  state,  the  foundation  of  many 
great  cities — all  that  is  most  advanced  by  you  in  all 
ages  of  history,  and  memory  of  times;  the  invention 
of  letters,  which  are  the  interpreters  of  sciences  and  the 
guardians  of  all  excellent  things.  I  think  I  may  say 
more — beyond  your  gods,  your  temples,  your  oracles  and 
sacrifices.  The  author  of  those  books  lived  a  thousand 
years  before  the  siege  of  Troy,  and  more  than  fifteen 
hundred  before  Homer."  Time  is  the  ally  of  truth, 
and  wise  men  believe  nothing  but  what  is  certain,  and 
what  has  been  verified  by  time.  The  principal  author- 
ity of  these  Scriptures  is  derived  from  their  venerable 
antiquity.  The  most  learned  of  the  Ptolemies,  who 
was  surnamed  Philadelphus,  an  accomplished  prince,  by 
the  advice  of  Demetrius  Phalareus,  obtained  a  copy  of 
these  holy  books.  It  may  be  found  at  this  day  in  his 
library.  The  divinity  of  these  Scriptures  is  proved  by 
this,  that  all  that  is  done  in  our  days  may  be  found  pre- 
dicted in  them;  they  contain  all  that  has  since  passed 
in  the  view  of  men. 

Is  not  the  accomplishment  of  a  prophecy  a  testimony 
to  its  truth?  Seeing  that  events  which  are  past  have 
vindicated  these  prophecies,  shall  we  be  blamed  for  trust- 
ing them  in  events  that  are  to  come?  Now,  as  we  be- 
lieve things  that  have  been  prophesied  and  have  come 
to  pass,  so  we  believe  things  that  have  been  told  us, 
but  not  yet  come  to  pass,  because  they  have  all  been 
foretold  by  the  same  Scriptures,  as  well  those  that  are 
verified  every  day  as  those  that  still  remain  to  be  ful- 
filled. 

These  Holy  Scriptures  teach  us  that  there  is  one 
God,  who  made  the  world-out  of  nothing,  who,  though 
daily  seen,  is  invisible;  his  infiniteness  is  known  only 


42  TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

to  himself;  his  immensity  conceals,  but  at  the  same 
time  discovers  him.  He  has  ordained  for  men,  accord- 
ing to  their  lives,  rewards  and  punishments;  he  will 
raise  all  the  dead  that  have  ever  lived  from  the  creation 
of  the  world,  will  command  them  to  reassume  their 
bodies,  and  thereupon  adjudge  them  to  felicity  that  has 
no  end,  or  to  eternal  flames.  The  fires  of  hell  are  those 
hidden  flames  which  the  earth  shuts  up  in  her  bosom. 
He  has  in  past  times  sent  into  the  world  preachers  or 
prophets.  The  prophets  of  those  old  times  were  Jews; 
they  addressed  their  oracles,  for  such  they  were,  to  the 
Jews,  who  have  stored  them  up  in  the  Scriptures.  On 
them,  as  has  been  said,  Christianity  is  founded,  though 
the  Christian  differs  in  his  ceremonies  from  the  Jew. 
We  are  accused  of  worshiping  a  man,  and  not  the  God 
of  the  Jews.  Not  so.  The  honor  we  bear  to  Christ 
does  not  derogate  from  the  honor  we  bear  to  God. 

On  account  of  the  merit  of  these  ancient  patriarchs, 
the  Jews  were  the  only  beloved  people  of  God;  he  de- 
lighted to  be  in  communication  with  them  by  his  own 
mouth.  By  him  they  were  raised  to  admirable  great- 
ness. But  with  perversity  they  wickedly  ceased  to  re- 
gard him;  they  changed  his  laws  into  a  profane  wor- 
ship. He  warned  them  that  he  would  take  to  himself 
servants  more  faithful  than  they,  and,  for  their  crime, 
punished  them  by  driving  them  forth  from  their  coun- 
try. They  are  now  spread  all  over  the  world;  they 
wander  in  all  parts;  they  cannot  enjoy  the  air  they 
breathed  at  their  birth;  they  have  neither  man  nor  God 
for  their  king.  As  he  threatened  them,  so  he  has  done. 
He  has  taken,  in  all  nations  and  countries  of  the  earth, 
people  more  faithful  than  they.  Through  his  prophets 
he  had  declared  that  these  should  have  greater  favors, 
and  that  a  Messiah  should  come,  to  publish  a  new  law 


TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY.  43 

among  them.  This  Messiah  was  Jesus,  who  is  also  God. 
For  God  may  be  derived  from  God,  as  the  light  of  a 
candle  may  be  derived  from  the  light  of  another  candle. 
God  and  his  Son  are  the  self-same  God — a  light  is  the 
same  light  as  that  from  which  it  was  taken. 

The  Scriptures  make  known  two  comings  of  the  Son 
of  God;  the  first  in  humility,  the  second  at  the  day  of 
judgment,  in  power.  The  Jews  might  have  known  all 
this  from  the  prophets,  but  their  sins  have  so  blinded 
them  that  they  did  not  recognize  him  at  his  first  coming, 
and  are  still  vainly  expecting  him.  They  believed  that 
all  the  miracles  wrought  by  him  were  the  work  of  magic. 
The  doctors  of  the  law  and  the  chief  priests  were  en- 
vious of  him;  they  denounced  him  to  Pilate.  He  was 
crucified,  died,  was  buried,  and  after  three  days  rose 
again.  For  forty  days  he  remained  among  his  disciples. 
Then  he  was  environed  in  a  cloud,  and  rose  up  to 
heaven — a  truth  far  more  certain  than  any  human 
testimonies  touching  the  ascension  of  Romulus  or  of 
any  other  Eoman  prince  mounting  up  to  the  same 
place. 

Tertullian  then  describes  the  origin  and  nature  of 
devils,  who,  under  Satan,  their  prince,  produce  dis- 
eases, irregularities  of  the  air,  plagues,  and  the  blighting 
of  the  blossoms  of  the  earth,  who  seduce  men  to  offer 
sacrifices,  that  they  may  have  the  blood  of  the  victims, 
which  is  their  food.  They  are  as  nimble  as  the  birds, 
and  hence  know  every  thing  that  is  passing  upon  earth; 
they  live  in  the  air,  and  hence  can  spy  what  is  going  on 
in  heaven;  for  this  reason  they  can  impose  on  men 
feigned  prophecies,  and  deliver  oracles.  Thus  they 
announced  in  Home  that  a  victory  would  be  obtained 
over  King  Perseus,  when  in  truth  they  knew  that  the 
battle  was  already  won.  They  falsely  cure  diseases; 


44  TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

for,  taking  possession  of  the  body  of  a  man,  they  pro- 
duce in  him  a  distemper,  and  then  ordaining  some  rem- 
edy to  be  used,  they  cease  to  afflict  him,  and  men  think 
that  a  cure  has  taken  place. 

Though  Christians  deny  that  the  emperor  is  a  god, 
they  nevertheless  pray  for  his  prosperity,  because  the 
general  dissolution  that  threatens  the  universe,  the  con- 
flagration of  the  world,  is  retarded  so  long  as  the  glori- 
ous majesty  of  the  triumphant  Eoman  Empire  shall  last. 
They  desire  not  to  be  present  at  the  subversion  of  all 
Nature.  They  acknowledge  only  one  republic,  but  it  is 
the  whole  world;  they  constitute  one  body,  worship  one 
God,  and  all  look  forward  to  eternal  happiness.  Not 
only  do  they  pray  for  the  emperor  and  the  magistrates, 
but  also  for  peace.  They  read  the  Scriptures  to  nourish 
their  faith,  lift  up  their  hope,  and  strengthen  the  confi- 
dence they  have  in  God.  They  assemble  to  exhort  one 
another;  they  remove  sinners  from  their  societies;  they 
have  bishops  who  preside  over  them,  approved  by  the 
suffrages  of  those  whom  they  are  to  conduct.  At  the 
end  of  each  month  every  one  contributes  if  he  will,  but 
no  one  is  constrained  to  give;  the  money  gathered  in 
this  manner  is  the  pledge  of  piety;  it  is  not  consumed 
in  eating  and  drinking,  but  in  feeding  the  poor,  and 
burying  them,  in  comforting  children  that  are  destitute 
of  parents  and  goods,  in  helping  old  men  who  have 
spent  the  best  of  their  days  in  the  service  of  the  faith- 
ful, in  assisting  those  who  have  lost  by  shipwreck  what 
they  had,  and  those  who  are  condemned  to  the  mines, 
or  have  been  banished  to  islands,  or  shut  up  in  prisons, 
because  they  professed  the  religion  of  the  true  God. 
There  is  but  one  thing  that  Christians  have  not  in  com- 
mon, and  that  one  thing  is  their  wives.  They  do  not 
feast  as  if  they  should  die  to-morrow,  nor  build  as  if  they 


TERTULLIAN'S  EXPOSITION  OF  CHRISTIANITY.  45 

should  never  die.  The  objects  of  their  life  are  inno- 
cence, justice,  patience,  temperance,  chastity. 

To  this  noble  exposition  of  Christian  belief  and  life 
in  his  day,  Tertullian  does  not  hesitate  to  add  an  omi- 
nous warning  to  the  magistrates  he  is  addressing — 
ominous,  for  it  was  a  forecast  of  a  great  event  soon  to 
come  to  pass:  "  Our  origin  is  but  recent,  yet  already  we 
fill  all  that  your  power  acknowledges — cities,  fortresses, 
islands,  provinces,  the  assemblies  of  the  people,  the 
wards  of  Eome,  the  palace,  the  senate,  the  public  places, 
and  especially  the  armies.  We  have  left  you  nothing 
but  your  temples.  Eeflect  what  wars  we  are  able  to 
undertake!  With  what  promptitude  might  we  not  arm 
ourselves  were  we  not  restrained  by  our  religion,  which 
teaches  us  that  it  is  better  to  be  killed  than  to  kill! " 

Before  he  closes  his  defense,  Tertullian  renews  an 
assertion  which,  carried  into  practice,  as  it  subsequently 
was,  affected  the  intellectual  development  of  all  Europe. 
He  declares  that  the  Holy  Scriptures  are  a  treasure  from 
which  all  the  true  wisdom  in  the  world  has  been  drawn; 
that  every  philosopher  and  every  poet  is  indebted  to 
them.  He  labors  to  show  that  they  are  the  standard  and 
measure  of  all  truth,  and  that  whatever  is  inconsistent 
with  them  must  necessarily  be  false. 

From  Tertullian's  able  work  we  see  what  Christian- 
ity was  while  it  was  suffering  persecution  and  strug- 
gling for  existence.  We  have  now  to  see  what  it  be- 
came when  in  possession  of  imperial  power.  Great  is 
the  difference  between  Christianity  under  Severus  and 
Christianity  after  Constantine.  Many  of  the  doctrines 
which  at  the  latter  period  were  preeminent,  in  the  for- 
mer were  unknown. 

Two  causes  led  to  the  amalgamation  of  Christianity 
with  paganism:  1.  The  political  necessities  of  the  new 


46  PAGANIZATION  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

dynasty;  2.  The  policy  adopted  by  the  new  religion  to 
insure  its  spread. 

1.  Though  the  Christian  party  had  proved  itself 
sufficiently  strong  to  give  a  master  to  the  empire,  it  was 
never  sufficiently  strong  to  destroy  its  antagonist,  pagan- 
ism.    The  issue  of  the  struggle  between  them  was  an 
amalgamation  of  the  principles  of  both.    In  this,  Chris- 
tianity differed  from  Mohammedanism,  which  absolutely 
annihilated  its  antagonist,  and  spread  its  own  doctrines 
without  adulteration. 

Constantine  continually  showed  by  his  acts  that  he 
felt  he  must  be  the  impartial  sovereign  of  all  his  people, 
not  merely  the  representative  of  a  successful  faction. 
Hence,  if  he  built  Christian  churches,  he  also  restored 
pagan  temples;  if  he  listened  to  the  clergy,  he  also  con- 
sulted the  haruspices;  if  he  summoned  the  Council  of 
Nicea,  he  also  honored  the  statue  of  Fortune;  if  he 
accepted  the  rite  of  baptism,  he  also  struck  a  medal 
bearing  his  title  of  "  God."  His  statue,  on  the  top  of 
the  great  porphyry  pillar  at  Constantinople,  consisted 
of  an  ancient  image  of  Apollo,  whose  features  were  re- 
placed by  those  of  the  emperor,  and  its  head  surrounded 
by  the  nails  feigned  to  have  been  used  at  the  cruci- 
fixion of  Christ,  arranged  so  as  to  form  a  crown  of 
glory. 

Feeling  that  there  must  be  concessions  to  the  de- 
feated pagan  party,  in  accordance  with  its  ideas,  he 
looked  with  favor  on  the  idolatrous  movements  of  his 
court.  In  fact,  the  leaders  of  these  movements  were 
persons  of  his  own  family. 

2.  To  the  emperor — a  mere  worldling — a  man  with- 
out any  religious  convictions,  doubtless  it  appeared  best 
for  himself,  best  for  the  empire,  and  best  for  the  con- 
tending parties,  Christian  and  pagan,  to  promote  their 


CHRISTIANITY  UNDER  CONSTANTINB.  47 

union  or  amalgamation  as  much  as  possible.  Even  sin- 
cere Christians  do  not  seem  to  have  been  averse  to  this; 
perhaps  they  believed  that  the  new  doctrines  would  dif- 
fuse most  thoroughly  by  incorporating  in  themselves 
ideas  borrowed  from  the  old,  that  Truth  would  assert 
herself  in  the  end,  and  the  impurity  be  cast  off.  In  ac- 
complishing this  amalgamation,  Helena,  the  empress- 
mother,  aided  by  the  court  ladies,  led  the  way.  For  her 
gratification  there  were  discovered,  in  a  cavern  at  Jeru- 
salem, wherein  they  had  lain  buried  for  more  than  three 
centuries,  the  Savior's  cross,  and  those  of  the  two  thieves, 
the  inscription,  and  the  nails  that  had  been  used.  They 
were  identified  by  miracle.  A  true  relic-worship  set  in. 
The  superstition  of  the  old  Greek  times  reappeared;  the 
times  when  the  tools  with  which  the  Trojan  horse  was 
made  might  still  be  seen  at  Metapontum,  the  sceptre  of 
Pelops  at  Chasroneia,  the  spear  of  Achilles  at  Phaselis, 
the  sword  of  Memnon  at  Nicomedia,  when  the  Tegeates 
could  show  the  hide  of  the  Calydonian  boar  and  very 
many  cities  boasted  their  possession  of  the  true  palla- 
dium of  Troy;  when  there  were  statues  of  Minerva  that 
could  brandish  spears,  paintings  that  could  blush,  im- 
ages that  could  sweat,  and  endless  shrines  and  sanctua- 
ries at  which  miracle-cures  could  be  performed. 

As  years  passed  on,  the  faith  described  by  Tertul- 
lian  was  transmuted  into  one  more  fashionable  and 
more  debased.  It  was  incorporated  with  the  old  Greek 
mythology.  Olympus  was  restored,  but  the  divinities 
passed  under  other  names.  The  more  powerful  prov- 
inces insisted  on  the  adoption  of  their  time-honored 
conceptions.  Views  of  the  Trinity,  in  accordance  with 
Egyptian  traditions,  were  established.  Not  only  was 
the  adoration  of  Isis  under  a  new  name  restored,  but 
even  her  image,  standing  on  the  crescent  moon,  reap- 


48  PAGANIZATION  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

peared.  The  well-known  effigy  of  that  goddess,  with 
the  infant  Horus  in  her  arms,  has  descended  to  our  days 
in  the  beautiful,  artistic  creations  of  the  Madonna  and 
Child.  Such  restorations  of  old  conceptions  under  novel 
forms  were  everywhere  received  with  delight.  When 
it  was  announced  to  the  Ephesians  that  the  Council  of 
that  place,  headed  by  Cyril,  had  decreed  that  the  Virgin 
should  be  called  "  the  Mother  of  God/'  with  tears  of 
joy  they  embraced  the  knees  of  their  bishop;  it  was  the 
old  instinct  peeping  out;  their  ancestors  would  have 
done  the  same  for  Diana. 

This  attempt  to  conciliate  worldly  converts,  by  adopt- 
ing their  ideas  and  practices,  did  not  pass  without  re- 
monstrance from  those  whose  intelligence  discerned  the 
motive.  "  You  have,"  says  Faustus  to  Augustine,  "  sub- 
stituted your  agapas  for  the  sacrifices  of  the  pagans;  for 
their  idols  your  martyrs,  whom  you  serve  with  the  very 
same  honors.  You  appease  the  shades  of  the  dead  with 
wine  and  feasts;  you  celebrate  the  solemn  festivities  of 
the  Gentiles,  their  calends,  and  their  solstices;  and,  as  to 
their  manners,  those  you  have  retained  without  any  al- 
teration. Nothing  distinguishes  you  from  the  pagans, 
except  that  you  hold  your  assemblies  apart  from  them." 
Pagan  observances  were  everywhere  introduced.  At 
weddings  it  was  the  custom  to  sing  hymns  to  Venus. 

Let  us  pause  here  a  moment,  and  see,  in  anticipa- 
tion, to  what  a  depth  of  intellectual  degradation  this 
policy  of  paganization  eventually  led.  Heathen  rites 
were  adopted,  a  pompous  and  splendid  ritual,  gorgeous 
robes,  mitres,  tiaras,  wax-tapers,  processional  services, 
lustrations,  gold  and  silver  vases,  were  introduced.  The 
Roman  lituus,  the  chief  ensign  of  the  augurs,  became 
the  crozier.  Churches  were  built  over  the  tombs  of 
martyrs,  and  consecrated  with  rites  borrowed  from  the 


INTRODUCTION  OF  ROMAN  RITES.  49 

ancient  laws  of  the  Eoraan  pontiffs.  Festivals  and  com- 
memorations of  martyrs  multiplied  with  the  numberless 
fictitious  discoveries  of  their  remains.  Fasting  became 
the  grand  means  of  repelling  the  devil  and  appeasing 
God;  celibacy  the  greatest  of  the  virtues.  Pilgrimages 
were  made  to  Palestine  and  the  tombs  of  the  martyrs. 
Quantities  of  dust  and  earth  were  brought  from  the 
Holy  Land  and  sold  at  enormous  prices,  as  antidotes 
against  devils.  The  virtues  of  consecrated  water  were 
upheld.  Images  and  relics  were  introduced  into  the 
churches,  and  worshiped  after  the  fashion  of  the  heathen 
gods.  It  was  given  out  that  prodigies  and  miracles  were 
to  be  seen  in  certain  places,  as  in  the  heathen  times. 
The  happy  souls  of  departed  Christians  were  invoked; 
it  was  believed  that  they  were  wandering  about  the 
world,  or  haunting  their  graves.  There  was  a  multi- 
plication of  temples,  altars,  and  penitential  garments. 
The  festival  of  the  purification  of  the  Virgin  was  in- 
vented to  remove  the  uneasiness  of  heathen  converts  on 
account  of  the  loss  of  their  Lupercalia,  or  feasts  of  Pan. 
The  worship  of  images,  of  fragments  of  the  cross,  or 
bones,  nails,  and  other  relics,  a  true  fetich  worship,  was 
cultivated.  Two  arguments  were  relied  on  for  the  au- 
thenticity of  these  objects — the  authority  of  the  Church, 
and  the  working  of  miracles.  Even  the  worn-out  cloth- 
ing of  the  saints  and  the  earth  of  their  graves  were  ven- 
erated. From  Palestine  were  brought  what  were  af- 
firmed to  be  the  skeletons  of  St.  Mark  and  St.  James, 
and  other  ancient  worthies.  The  apotheosis  of  the 
old  Roman  times  was  replaced  by  canonization;  tute- 
lary saints  succeeded  to  local  mythological  divinities. 
Then  came  the  mystery  of  transubstantiation,  or  the 
conversion  of  bread  and  wine  by  the  priest  into  the 
flesh  and  blood  of  Christ.  As  centuries  passed,  the 


50  INTRODUCTION  OP  ROMAN  RITES. 

paganization  became  more  and  more  complete.  Festi- 
vals sacred  to  the  memory  of  the  lance  with  which  the 
Savior's  side  was  pierced,  the  nails  that  fastened  him 
to  the  cross,  and  the  crown  of  thorns,  were  instituted. 
Though  there  were  several  abbeys  that  possessed  this 
last  peerless  relic,  no  one  dared  to  say  that  it  was  im- 
possible they  could  all  be  authentic. 

We  may  read  with  advantage  the  remarks  made  by 
Bishop  Newton  on  this  paganization  of  Christianity. 
He  asks :  "  Is  not  the  worship  of  saints  and  angels  now 
in  all  respects  the  same  that  the  worship  of  demons 
was  in  former  times?  The  name  only  is  different,  the 
thing  is  identically  the  same,  .  .  .  the  deified  men  of  the 
Christians  are  substituted  for  the  deified  men  of  the 
heathens.  The  promoters  of  this  worship  were  sensible 
that  it  was  the  same,  and  that  the  one  succeeded  to  the 
other;  and,  as  the  worship  is  the  same,  so  likewise  it  is 
performed  with  the  same  ceremonies.  The  burning  of 
incense  or  perfumes  on  several  altars  at  one  and  the 
same  time;  the  sprinkling  of  holy  water,  or  a  mixture 
of  salt  and  common  water,  at  going  into  and  coming  out 
of  places  of  public  worship;  the  lighting  up  of  a  great 
number  of  lamps  and  wax-candles  in  broad  daylight 
before  altars  and  statues  of  these  deities;  the  hanging 
up  of  votive  offerings  and  rich  presents  as  attestations 
of  so  many  miraculous  cures  and  deliverances  from  dis- 
eases and  dangers;  the  canonization  or  deification  of 
deceased  worthies;  the  assigning  of  distinct  provinces  or 
prefectures  to  departed  heroes  and  saints;  the  worship- 
ing and  adoring  of  the  dead  in  their  sepulchres,  shrines, 
and  relics;  the  consecrating  and  bowing  down  to  im- 
ages; the  attributing  of  miraculous  powers  and  virtues 
to  idols;  the  setting  up  of  little  oratories,  altars,  and 
statues  in  the  streets  and  highways,  and  on  the  tops  of 


DEBASEMENT  OF  CHRISTIANITY.  51 

mountains;  the  carrying  of  images  and  relics  in  pompous 
procession,  with  numerous  lights  and  with  music  and 
singing;  flagellations  at  solemn  seasons  under  the  notion 
of  penance;  a  great  variety  of  religious  orders  and  fra- 
ternities of  priests;  the  shaving  of  priests,  or  the  tonsure 
as  it  is  called,  on  the  crown  of  their  heads;  the  imposing 
of  celibacy  and  vows  of  chastity  on  the  religious  of  both 
sexes — all  these  and  many  more  rites  and  ceremonies  are 
equally  parts  of  pagan  and  popish  superstition.  Nay, 
the  very  same  temples,  the  very  same  images,  which 
were  once  consecrated  to  Jupiter  and  the  other  demons, 
are  now  consecrated  to  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  other 
saints.  The  very  same  rites  and  inscriptions  are  as- 
cribed to  both,  the  very  same  prodigies  and  miracles 
are  related  of  these  as  of  those.  In  short,  almost  the 
whole  of  paganism  is  converted  and  applied  to  popery; 
the  one  is  manifestly  formed  upon  the  same  plan  and 
principles  as  the  other;  so  that  there  is  not  only  a  con- 
formity, but  even  a  uniformity,  in  the  worship  of  an- 
cient and  modern,  of  heathen  and  Christian  Rome." 

Thus  far  Bishop  Newton;  but  to  return  to  the  times 
of  Constantine:  though  these  concessions  to  old  and 
popular  ideas  were  permitted  and  even  encouraged,  the 
dominant  religious  party  never  for  a  moment  hesitated 
to  enforce  its  decisions  by  the  aid  of  the  civil  power — 
an  aid  which  was  freely  given.  Constantine  thus  car- 
ried into  effect  the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Nicea.  In 
the  affair  of  Arius,  he  even  ordered  that  whoever  should 
find  a  book  of  that  heretic,  and  not  burn  it,  should  be 
put  to  death.  In  like  manner  Nestor  was  by  Theodo- 
sius  the  Younger  banished  to  an  Egyptian  oasis. 

The  pagan  party  included  many  of  the  old  aristo- 
cratic families  of  the  empire;  it  counted  among  its  ad- 
herents all  the  disciples  of  the  old  philosophical  schools. 


52  DEBASEMENT  OF  CHRISTIANITY. 

It  looked  down  on  its  antagonist  with  contempt.  It 
asserted  that  knowledge  is  to  be  obtained  only  by  the 
laborious  exercise  of  human  observation  and  human 
reason. 

The  Christian  party  asserted  that  all  knowledge  is 
to  be  found  in  the  Scriptures  and  in  the  traditions  of 
the  Church;  that,  in  the  written  revelation,  God  had  not 
only  given  a  criterion  of  truth,  but  had  furnished  us  all 
that  he  intended  us  to  know.  The  Scriptures,  there- 
fore, contain  the  sum,  the  end  of  all  knowledge.  The 
clergy,  with  the  emperor  at  their  back,  would  endure  no 
intellectual  competition. 

Thus  came  into  prominence  what  were  termed  sa- 
cred and  profane  knowledge;  thus  came  into  presence  of 
each  other  two  opposing  parties,  one  relying  on  human 
reason  as  its  guide,  the  other  on  revelation.  Paganism 
leaned  for  support  on  the  learning  of  its  philosophers, 
Christianity  on  the  inspiration  of  its  Fathers. 

The  Church  thus  set  herself  forth  as  the  depository 
and  arbiter  of  knowledge;  she  was  ever  ready  to  resort 
to  the  civil  power  to  compel  obedience  to  her  decisions. 
She  thus  took  a  course  which  determined  her  whole 
future  career:  she  became  a  stumbling-block  in  the 
intellectual  advancement  of  Europe  for  more  than  a 
thousand  years. 

The  reign  of  Constantine  marks  the  epoch  of  the 
transformation  of  Christianity  from  a  religion  into  a 
political  system;  and  though,  in  one  sense,  that  system 
was  degraded  into  an  idolatry,  in  another  it  had  risen 
into  a  development  of  the  old  Greek  mythology.  The 
maxim  holds  good  in  the  social  as  well  as  in  the  me- 
chanical world,  that,  when  two  bodies  strike,  the  form  of 
both  is  changed.  Paganism  was  modified  by  Christi- 
anity; Christianity  by  Paganism. 


THE  TRINITARIAN  DISPUTE.  53 

In  the  Trinitarian  controversy,  which  first  broke  out 
in  Egypt — Egypt,  the  land  of  Trinities — the  chief  point 
in  discussion  was  to  define  the  position  of  "  the  Son." 
There  lived  in  Alexandria  a  presbyter  of  the  name  of 
Arius,  a  disappointed  candidate  for  the  office  of  bishop. 
He  took  the  ground  that  there  was  a  time  when,  from 
the  very  nature  of  sonship,  the  Son  did  not  exist,  and 
a  time  at  which  he  commenced  to  be,  asserting  that  it 
is  the  necessary  condition  of  the  filial  relation  that  a 
father  must  be  older  than  his  son.  But  this  assertion 
evidently  denied  the  coeternity  of  the  three  persons  of 
the  Trinity;  it  suggested  a  subordination  or  inequality 
among  them,  and  indeed  implied  a  time  when  the 
Trinity  did  not  exist.  Hereupon,  the  bishop,  who  had 
been  the  successful  competitor  against  Arius,  displayed 
his  rhetorical  powers  in  public  debates  on  the  question, 
and,  the  strife  spreading,  the  Jews  and  pagans,  who 
formed  a  very  large  portion  of  the  population  of  Alex- 
andria, amused  themselves  with  theatrical  representa- 
tions of  the  contest  on  the  stage — the  point  of  their 
burlesques  being  the  equality  of  age  of  the  Father  and 
his  Son. 

Such  was  the  violence  the  controversy  at  length 
assumed,  that  the  matter  had  to  be  referred  to  the  em- 
peror. At  first  he  looked  upon  the  dispute  as  alto- 
gether frivolous,  and  perhaps  in  truth  inclined  to  the 
assertion  of  Arius,  that  in  the  very  nature  of  the  thing 
a  father  must  be  older  than  his  son.  So  great,  however, 
was  the  pressure  laid  upon  him,  that  he  was  eventually 
compelled  to  summon  the  Council  of  Nicea,  which,  to 
dispose  of  the  conflict,  set  forth  a  formulary  or  creed, 
and  attached  to  it  this  anathema:  "The  Holy  Catholic 
and  Apostolic  Church  anathematizes  those  who  say  that 
there  was  a  time  when  the  Son  of  God  was  not,  and 
6 


54  DISPERSION  OP  THE  ALEXANDRIAN  LIBRARY. 

that,  before  he  was  begotten,  he  was  not,  and  that  he 
was  made  out  of  nothing,  or  out  of  another  substance 
or  essence,  and  is  created,  or  changeable,  or  alterable." 
Constantine  at  once  enforced  the  decision  of  the  council 
by  the  civil  power. 

A  few  years  subsequently  the  Emperor  Theodosius 
prohibited  sacrifices,  made  the  inspection  of  the  entrails 
of  animals  a  capital  offense,  and  forbade  any  one  enter- 
ing a  temple.  He  instituted  Inquisitors  of  Faith,  and 
ordained  that  all  who  did  not  accord  with  the  belief  of 
Damasus,  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  and  Peter,  the  Bishop  of 
Alexandria,  should  be  driven  into  exile,  and  deprived 
of  civil  rights.  Those  who  presumed  to  celebrate  Easter 
on  the  same  day  as  the  Jews,  he  condemned  to  death. 
The  Greek  language  was  now  ceasing  to  be  known  in 
the  West,  and  true  learning  was  becoming  extinct. 

At  this  time  the  bishopric  of  Alexandria  was  held 
by  one  Thcophilus.  An  ancient  temple  of  Osiris  hav- 
ing been  given  to  the  Christians  of  the  city  for  the  site 
of  a  church,  it  happened  that,  in  digging  the  foundation 
for  the  new  edifice,  the  obscene  symbols  of  the  former 
worship  chanced  to  be  found.  These,  with  more  zeal 
than  modesty,  Theophilus  exhibited  in  the  market-place 
to  public  derision.  With  less  forbearance  than  the  Chris- 
tian party  showed  when  it  was  insulted  in  the  theatre 
during  the  Trinitarian  dispute,  the  pagans  resorted  to 
violence,  and  a  riot  ensued.  They  held  the  Serapion  as 
their  headquarters.  Such  were  the  disorder  and  blood- 
shed that  the  emperor  had  to  interfere.  He  dispatched 
a  rescript  to  Alexandria,  enjoining  the  bishop,  Theophi- 
lus, to  destroy  the  Serapion;  and  the  great  library,  which 
had  been  collected  by  the  Ptolemies,  and  had  escaped 
the  fire  of  Julius  Csesar,  was  by  that  fanatic  dispersed. 

The  bishopric  thus  held  by  Theophilus  was  in  due 


THE  MURDER  OF  HYPATIA.  55 

time  occupied  by  his  nephew  St.  Cyril,  who  had  com- 
mended himself  to  the  approval  of  the  Alexandrian  con- 
gregations as  a  successful  and  fashionable  preacher.  It 
was  he  who  had  so  much  to  do  with  the  introduction  of 
the  worship  of  the  Virgin  Mary.  His  hold  upon  the 
audiences  of  the  giddy  city  was,  however,  much  weak- 
ened by  Hypatia,  the  daughter  of  Theon,  the  mathe- 
matician, who  not  only  distinguished  herself  by  her  expo- 
sition of  the  doctrines  of  Plato  and  Aristotle,  but  also 
by  her  comments  on  the  writings  of  Apollonius  and 
other  geometers.  Each  day  before  her  academy  stood 
a  long  train  of  chariots;  her  lecture-room  was  crowded 
with  the  wealth  and  fashion  of  Alexandria.  They 
came  to  listen  to  her  discourses  on  those  questions 
which  man  in  all  ages  has  asked,  but  which  never  yet 
have  been  answered:  "What  am  I?  Where  am  I? 
What  can  I  know?" 

Hypatia  and  Cyril!  Philosophy  and  bigotry.  They 
cannot  exist  together.  So  Cyril  felt,  and  on  that  feel- 
ing he  acted.  As  Hypatia  retired  to  her  academy,  she 
was  assaulted  by  Cyril's  mob — a  mob  of  many  monks. 
Stripped  naked  in  the  street,  she  was  dragged  into  a 
church,  and  there  killed  by  the  club  of  Peter  the 
Reader.  The  corpse  was  cut  to  pieces,  the  flesh  was 
scraped  from  the  bones  with  shells,  and  the  remnants 
cast  into  a  fire.  For  this  frightful  crime  Cyril  was 
never  called  to  account.  It  seemed  to  be  admitted  that 
the  end  sanctified  the  means. 

So  ended  Greek  philosophy  in  Alexandria,  so  came 
to  an  untimely  close  the  learning  that  the  Ptolemies 
had  done  so  much  to  promote.  The  "  Daughter  Li- 
brary," that  of  the  Serapion,  had  been  dispersed.  The 
fate  of  Hypatia  was  a  warning  to  all  who  would  culti- 
vate profane  knowledge.  Henceforth  there  was  to  be  no 


56  PELAGIUS. 

freedom  for  human  thought.  Every  one  must  think  as 
the  ecclesiastical  authority  ordered  him,  A.  D.  414.  In 
Athens  itself  philosophy  awaited  its  doom.  Justinian  at 
length  prohibited  its  teaching,  and  caused  all  its  schools 
in  that  city  to  be  closed. 

While  these  events  were  transpiring  in  the  Eastern 
provinces  of  the  Koman  Empire,  the  spirit  that  had 
produced  them  was  displaying  itself  in  the  West.  A 
British  monk,  who  had  assumed  the  name  of  Pelagius, 
passed  through  Western  Europe  and  Northern  Africa, 
teaching  that  death  was  not  introduced  into  the  world 
by  the  sin  of  Adam;  that  on  the  contrary  he  was  neces- 
sarily and  by  nature  mortal,  and  had  he  not  sinned  he 
would  nevertheless  have  died;  that  the  consequences  of 
his  sins  were  confined  to  himself,  and  did  not  affect  his 
posterity.  From  these  premises  Pelagius  drew  certain 
important  theological  conclusions. 

At  Rome,  Pelagius  had  been  received  with  favor;  at 
Carthage,  at  the  instigation  of  St.  Augustine,  he  was 
denounced.  By  a  synod,  held  at  Diospolis,  he  was  ac- 
quitted of  heresy,  but,  on  referring  the  matter  to  the 
Bishop  of  Rome,  Innocent  I.,  he  was,  on  the  contrary, 
condemned.  It  happened  that  at  this  moment  Innocent 
died,  and  his  successor,  Zosimus,  annulled  his  judgment, 
and  declared  the  opinions  of  Pelagius  to  be  orthodox. 
These  contradictory  decisions  are  still  often  referred  to 
by  the  opponents  of  papal  infallibility.  Things  were  in 
this  state  of  confusion,  when  the  wily  African  bishops, 
through  the  influence  of  Count  Valerius,  procured  from 
the  emperor  an  edict  denouncing  Pelagius  as  a  heretic; 
he  and  his  accomplices  were  condemned  to  exile  and  the 
forfeiture  of  their  goods.  To  affirm  that  death  was  in 
the  world  before  the  fall  of  Adam,  was  a  state  crime. 

It  is  very  instructive  to  consider  the  principles  on 


CONDEMNATION  OF  PELAGIUS.  57 

which  this  strange  decision  was  founded.  Since  the 
question  was  purely  philosophical,  one  might  suppose 
that  it  would  have  been  discussed  on  natural  principles; 
instead  of  that,  theological  considerations  alone  were  ad- 
duced. The  attentive  reader  will  have  remarked,  in 
Tertullian's  statement  of  the  principles  of  Christianity, 
a  complete  absence  of  the  doctrines  of  original  sin,  total 
depravity,  predestination,  grace,  and  atonement.  The 
intention  of  Christianity  as  set  forth  by  him,  has  noth- 
ing in  common  with  the  plan  of  salvation  upheld  two 
centuries  subsequently.  It  is  to  St.  Augustine,  a  Cartha- 
ginian, that  we  are  indebted  for  the  precision  of  our 
views  on  these  important  points. 

In  deciding  whether  death  had  been  in  the  world 
before  the  fall  of  Adam,  or  whether  it  was  the  penalty 
inflicted  on  the  world  for  his  sin,  the  course  taken  was 
to  ascertain  whether  the  views  of  Pelagius  were  accord- 
ant or  discordant  not  with  Nature  but  with  the  theologi- 
cal doctrines  of  St.  Augustine.  And  the  result  has  been 
such  as  might  be  expected.  The  doctrine  declared  to 
be  orthodox  by  ecclesiastical  authority  is  overthrown  by 
the  unquestionable  discoveries  of  modern  science.  Long 
before  a  human  being  had  appeared  upon  earth,  mill- 
ions of  individuals — nay,  more,  thousands  of  species 
and  even  genera — had  died;  those  which  remain  with  us 
are  an  insignificant  fraction  of  the  vast  hosts  that  have 
passed  away. 

A  consequence  of  great  importance  issued  from  the 
decision  of  the  Pelagian  controversy.  The  book  of 
Genesis  had  been  made  the  basis  of  Christianity.  If, 
in  a  theological  point  of  vieAv,  to  its  account  of  the  sin 
in  the  garden  of  Eden,  and  the  transgression  and  pun- 
ishment of  Adam,  so  much  weight  had  been  attached,  it 
also  in  a  philosophical  point  of  view  became  the  grand 


58  ST.  AUGUSTINE. 

authority  of  Patristic  science.  Astronomy,  geology,  ge- 
ography, anthropology,  chronology,  and  indeed  all  the 
various  departments  of  human  knowledge,  were  made 
to  conform  to  it. 

As  the  doctrines  of  St.  Augustine  have  had  the 
effect  of  thus  placing  theology  in  antagonism  with  sci- 
ence, it  may  be  interesting  to  examine  briefly  some  of 
the  more  purely  philosophical  views  of  that  great  man. 
For  this  purpose,  we  may  appropriately  select  portions 
of  his  study  of  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis,  as  contained 
in  the  eleventh,  twelfth,  and  thirteenth  books  of  his 
"  Confessions." 

These  consist  of  philosophical  discussions,  largely  in- 
terspersed with  rhapsodies.  He  prays  that  God  will 
give  him  to  understand  the  Scriptures,  and  will  open 
their  meaning  to  him;  he  declares  that  in  them  there  is 
nothing  superfluous,  but  that  the  words  have  a  manifold 
meaning. 

The  face  of  creation  testifies  that  there  has  been  a 
Creator;  but  at  once  arises  the  question,  "  How  and  when 
did  he  make  heaven  and  earth?  They  could  not  have 
been  made  in  heaven  and  earth,  the  world  could  not 
have  been  made  in  the  world,  nor  could  they  have  been 
made  when  there  was  nothing  to  make  them  of."  The 
solution  of  this  fundamental  inquiry  St.  Augustine 
finds  in  saying,  "  Thou  spakest,  and  they  were  made." 

But  the  difficulty  does  not  end  here.  St.  Augustine 
goes  on  to  remark  that  the  syllables  thus  uttered  by 
God  came  forth  in  succession,  and  there  must  have  been 
some  created  thing  to  express  the  words.  This  created 
thing  must,  therefore,  have  existed  before  heaven  and 
earth,  and  yet  there  could  have  been  no  corporeal  thing 
before  heaven  and  earth.  It  must  have  been  a  creature, 
because  the  words  passed  away  and  came  to  an  end; 


CRITICISM  ON  ST.  AUGUSTINE.  59 

but  we  know  that  "the  word  of  the  Lord  endureth 
forever." 

Moreover,  it  is  plain  that  the  words  thus  spoken 
could  not  have  been  spoken  successively,  but  simulta- 
neously, else  there  would  have  been  time  and  change — 
succession  in  its  nature  implying  time;  whereas  there 
was  then  nothing  but  eternity  and  immortality.  God 
knows  and  says  eternally  what  takes  place  in  time. 

St.  Augustine  then  defines,  not  without  much  mys- 
ticism, what  is  meant  by  the  opening  words  of  Genesis: 
"  In  the  beginning."  He  is  guided  to  his  conclusion  by 
another  scriptural  passage:  "How  wonderful  are  thy 
works,  0  Lord!  in  wisdom  hast  thou  made  them  all." 
This  "  wisdom  "  is  "  the  beginning,"  and  in  that  begin- 
ning the  Lord  created  the  heaven  and  the  earth. 

"  But,"  he  adds,  "  some  one  may  ask, '  What  was  God 
doing  before  he  made  the  heaven  and  the  earth?  for,  if 
at  any  particular  moment  he  began  to  employ  himself, 
that  means  time,  not  eternity.  In  eternity  nothing 
transpires — the  whole  is  present.'*  In  answering  this 
question,  he  cannot  forbear  one  of  those  touches  of 
rhetoric  for  which  he  was  so  celebrated:  "  I  will  not 
answer  this  question  by  saying  that  he  was  preparing 
hell  for  priers  into  his  mysteries.  I  say  that,  before 
God  made  heaven  and  earth,  he  did  not  make  any  thing, 
for  no  creature  could  be  made  before  any  creature  was 
made.  Time  itself  is  a  creature,  and  hence  it  could  not 
possibly  exist  before  creation. 

"  What,  then,  is  time  ?  The  past  is  not,  the  future 
is  not,  the  present — who  can  tell  what  it  is,  unless  it  be 
that  which  has  no  duration  between  two  nonentities? 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  '  a  long  time/  or  *  a  short 
time,'  for  there  are  no  such  things  as  the  past,  and  the 
future.  They  have  no  existence,  except  in  the  soul." 


60  CRITICISM  ON  ST.  AUGUSTINE. 

The  style  in  which  St.  Augustine  conveyed  his  ideas 
is  that  of  a  rhapsodical  conversation  with  God.  His 
works  are  an  incoherent  dream.  That  the  reader  may 
appreciate  this  remark,  I  might  copy  almost  at  random 
any  of  his  paragraphs.  The  following  is  from  the 
twelfth  book: 

"  This,  then,  is  what  I  conceive,  0  my  God,  when  I 
hear  thy  Scripture  saying,  In  the  beginning  God  made 
heaven  and  earth:  and  the  earth  was  invisible  and  with- 
out form,  and  darkness  was  upon  the  deep,  and  not  men- 
tioning what  day  thou  createdst  them;  this  is  what  I 
conceive,  that  because  of  the  heaven  of  heavens — that  in- 
tellectual heaven,  whose  intelligences  know  all  at  once, 
not  in  part,  not  darkly,  not  through  a  glass,  but  as  a 
whole,  in  manifestation,  face  to  face;  not  this  thing 
now,  and  that  thing  anon;  but  (as  I  said)  know  all  at 
once,  without  any  succession  of  times;  and  because  of 
the  earth,  invisible  and  without  form,  without  any  suc- 
cession of  times,  which  succession  presents  'this  thing 
now,  that  thing  anon; '  because,  where  there  is  no  form, 
there  is  no  distinction  of  things;  it  is,  then,  on  account 
of  these  two,  a  primitive  formed,  and  a  primitive  form- 
less; the  one,  heaven,  but  the  heaven  of  heavens;  the 
other,  earth,  but  the  earth  movable  and  without  form; 
because  of  these  two  do  I  conceive,  did  thy  Scripture 
say  without  mention  of  days,  In  the  beginning  God 
created  the  heaven  and  the  earth.  For,  forthwith  it 
subjoined  what  earth  it  spake  of;  and  also  in  that  the 
firmament  is  recorded  to  be  created  the  second  day,  and 
called  heaven,  it  conveys  to  us  of  which  heaven  he  be- 
fore spake,  without  mention  of  days. 

"  Wondrous  depth  of  thy  words!  whose  surface, 
behold!  is  before  us,  inviting  to  little  ones;  yet  are 
they  a  wondrous  depth,  0  my  God,  a  wondrous  depth! 


CRITICISM  ON  ST.   AUGUSTINE.  61 

It  is  awful  to  look  therein;  an  awfulness  of  honor,  and 
a  trembling  of  love.  The  enemies  thereof  I  hate  ve- 
hemently; 0  that  thou  wouldst  slay  them  with  thy 
two-edged  sword,  that  they  might  no  longer  be  enemies 
to  it:  for  so  do  I  love  to  have  them  slain  unto  them- 
selves, that  they  may  live  unto  thee." 

As  an  example  of  the  hermeneutical  manner  in 
which  St.  Augustine  unfolded  the  concealed  facts  of 
the  Scriptures,  I  may  cite  the  following  from  the  thir- 
teenth book  of  the  "  Confessions; "  his  object  is  to  show 
that  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  is  contained  in  the 
Mosaic  narrative  of  the  creation: 

"  Lo,  now  the  Trinity  appears  unto  me  in  a  glass 
darkly,  which  is  thou  my  God,  because  thou,  0  Father, 
in  him  who  is  the  beginning  of  our  wisdom,  which  is 
thy  wisdom,  born  of  thyself,  equal  unto  thee  and  co- 
eternal,  that  is,  in  thy  Son,  createdst  heaven  and  earth. 
Much  now  have  we  said  of  the  heaven  of  heavens,  and 
of  the  earth  invisible  and  without  form,  and  of  the  dark- 
some deep,  in  reference  to  the  wandering  instability  of 
its  spiritual  deformity,  unless  it  had  been  converted 
unto  him,  from  whom  it  had  its  then  degree  of  life, 
and  by  his  enlightening  became  a  beauteous  life,  and 
the  heaven  of  that  heaven,  which  was  afterward  set  be- 
tween water  and  water.  And  under  the  name  of  God, 
I  now  held  the  Father,  who  made  these  things;  and 
under  the  name  of  the  beginning,  the  Son,  in  whom  he 
made  these  things;  and  believing,  as  I  did,  my  God  as 
the  Trinity,  I  searched  further  in  his  holy  words,  and 
lo!  thy  Spirit  moved  upon  the  waters.  Behold  the 
Trinity,  my  God! — Father,  and  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
Creator  of  all  creation." 

That  I  might  convey  to  my  reader  a  just  impres- 
sion of  the  character  of  St.  Augustine's  philosophical 


62  CRITICISM  ON  ST.   AUGUSTINE. 

writings,  I  have,  in  the  two  quotations  here  given,  sub- 
stituted for  my  own  translation  that  of  the  Kev.  Dr. 
Pusey,  as  contained  in  Vol.  I.  of  the  "  Library  of  Fa- 
thers of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church,"  published  at  Ox- 
ford, 1840. 

Considering  the  eminent  authority  which  has  been 
attributed  to  the  writings  of  St.  Augustine  by  the  re- 
ligious world  for  nearly  fifteen  centuries,  it  is  proper 
to  speak  of  them  with  respect.  And  indeed  it  is  not 
necessary  to  do  otherwise.  The  paragraphs  here  quoted 
criticise  themselves.  No  one  did  more  than  this  Father 
to  bring  science  and  religion  into  antagonism;  it  was 
mainly  he  who  diverted  the  Bible  from  its  true  office — 
a  guide  to  purity  of  life — and  placed  it  in  the  perilous 
position  of  being  the  arbiter  of  human  knowledge,  an 
audacious  tyranny  over  the  mind  of  man.  The  ex- 
ample once  set,  there  was  no  want  of  followers;  the 
works  of  the  great  Greek  philosophers  were  stigmatized 
as  profane;  the  transcendently  glorious  achievements  of 
the  Museum  of  Alexandria  were  hidden  from  sight  by 
a  cloud  of  ignorance,  mysticism,  and  unintelligible  jar- 
gon, out  of  which  there  too  often  flashed  the  destroying 
lightnings  of  ecclesiastical  vengeance. 

A  divine  revelation  of  science  admits  of  no  improve- 
ment, no  change,  no  advance.  It  discourages  as  need- 
less, and  indeed  as  presumptuous,  all  new  discovery, 
considering  it  as  an  unlawful  prying  into  things  which 
it  was  the  intention  of  God  to  conceal. 

What,  then,  is  that  sacred,  that  revealed  science,  de- 
clared by  the  Fathers  to  be  the  sum  of  all  knowledge? 

It  likened  all  phenomena,  natural  and  spiritual,  to 
human  acts.  It  saw  in  the  Almighty,  the  Eternal,  only 
a  gigantic  man. 


THE  PATRISTIC  PHILOSOPHY.  63 

As  to  the  earth,  it  affirmed  that  it  is  a  flat  surface, 
over  which  the  sky  is  spread  like  a  dome,  or,  as  St. 
Augustine  tells  us,  is  stretched  like  a  skin.  In  this  the 
sun  and  moon  and  stars  move,  so  that  they  may  give 
light  by  day  and  by  night  to  man.  The  earth  was 
made  of  matter  created  by  God  out  of  nothing,  and, 
with  all  the  tribes  of  animals  and  plants  inhabiting  it, 
was  finished  in  six  days.  Above  the  sky  or  firmament 
is  heaven;  in  the  dark  and  fiery  space  beneath  the  earth 
is  hell.  The  earth  is  the  central  and  most  important 
body  of  the  universe,  all  other  things  being  intended 
for  and  subservient  to  it. 

As  to  man,  he  was  made  out  of  the  dust  of  the 
earth.  At  first  he  was  alone,  but  subsequently  woman 
was  formed  fronj  one  of  his  ribs.  He  is  the  greatest 
and  choicest  of  the  works  of  God.  He  was  placed  in  a 
paradise  near  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  and  was  very 
wise  and  very  pure;  but,  having  tasted  of  the  forbidden 
fruit,  and  thereby  broken  the  commandment  given  to 
him,  he  was  condemned  to  labor  and  to  death. 

The  descendants  of  the  first  man,  undeterred  by  his 
punishment,  pursued  such  a  career  of  wickedness  that 
it  became  necessary  to  destroy  them.  A  deluge,  there- 
fore, flooded  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  rose  over  the 
tops  of  the  mountains.  Having  accomplished  its  pur- 
pose, the  water  was  dried  up  by  a  wind. 

From  this  catastrophe  Noah  and  his  three  sons,  with 
their  wives,  were  saved  in  an  ark.  Of  these  sons,  Shem 
remained  in  Asia  and  repeopled  it.  Ham  peopled  Af- 
rica; Japhet,  Europe.  As  the  Fathers  were  not  ac- 
quainted with  the  existence  of  America,  they  did  not 
provide  an  ancestor  for  its  people. 

Let  us  listen  to  what  some  of  these  authorities  say 
in  support  of  their  assertions.  Thus  Lactantius,  refer- 


64  THE  PATRISTIC  PHILOSOPHY. 

ring  to  the  heretical  doctrine  of  the  globular  form  of 
the  earth,  remarks:  "  Is  it  possible  that  men  can  be  so 
absurd  as  to  believe  that  the  crops  and  the  trees  on  the 
other  side  of  the  earth  hang  downward,  and  that  men 
have  their  feet  higher  than  their  heads?  If  you  ask 
them  how  they  defend  .these  monstrosities,  how  things 
do  not  fall  away  from  the  earth  on  that  side,  they  re- 
ply that  the  nature  of  things  is  such  that  heavy  bodies 
tend  toward  the  centre,  like  the  spokes  of  a  wheel,  while 
light  bodies,  as  clouds,  smoke,  fire,  tend  from  the  centre 
to  the  heavens  on  all  sides.  Now,  I  am  really  at  a  loss 
what  to  say  of  those  who,  when  they  have  once  gone 
wrong,  steadily  persevere  in  their  folly,  and  defend  one 
absurd  opinion  by  another."  On  the  question  of  the 
antipodes,  St.  Augustine  asserts  that  "it  is  impossible 
there  should  be  inhabitants  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
earth,  since  no  such  race  is  recorded  by  Scripture  among 
the  descendants  of  Adam."  Perhaps,  however,  the  most 
unanswerable  argument  against  the  sphericity  of  the 
earth  was  this,  that  "  in  the  day  of  judgment,  men  on 
the  other  side  of  a  globe  could  not  see  the  Lord  de- 
scending through  the  air." 

It  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  say  any  thing  respect- 
ing the  introduction  of  death  into  the  world,  the  con- 
tinual interventions  of  spiritual  agencies  in  the  course 
of  events,  the  offices  of  angels  and  devils,  the  expected 
conflagration  of  the  earth,  the  tower  of  Babel,  the  con- 
fusion of  tongues,  the  dispersion  of  mankind,  the  inter- 
pretation of  natural  phenomena,  as  eclipses,  the  rain- 
bow, etc.  Above  all,  I  abstain  from  commenting  on 
the  Patristic  conceptions  of  the  Almighty;  they  are  too 
anthropomorphic,  and  wanting  in  sublimity. 

Perhaps,  however,  I  may  quote  from  Cosmos  Indi- 
copleustes  the  views  that  were  entertained  in  the  sixth 


THE  PATRISTIC  PHILOSOPHY.  65 

century.  He  wrote  a  work  entitled  "  Christian  Topog- 
raphy/' the  chief  intent  of  which  was  to  confute  the 
heretical  opinion  of  the  globular  form  of  the  earth,  and 
the  pagan  assertion  that  there  is  a  temperate  zone  on 
the  southern  side  of  the  torrid.  He  affirms  that,  ac- 
cording to  the  true  orthodox  system  of  geography,  the 
earth  is  a  quadrangular  plane,  extending  four  hundred 
days'  journey  east  and  west,  and  exactly  half  as  much 
north  and  south;  that  it  is  inclosed  hy  mountains, 
on  which  the  sky  rests;  that  one  on  the  north  side, 
huger  than  the  others,  by  intercepting  the  rays  of  the 
sun,  produces  night;  and  that  the  plane  of  the  earth  is 
not  set  exactly  horizontally,  but  with  a  little  inclination 
from  the  north:  hence  the  Euphrates,  Tigris,  and  other 
rivers,  running  southward,  are  rapid;  but  the  Nile, 
having  to  run  up-hill,  has  necessarily  a  very  slow 
current. 

The  Venerable  Bede,  writing  in  the  seventh  century, 
tells  us  that  "  the  creation  was  accomplished  in  six  days, 
and  that  the  earth  is  its  centre  and  its  primary  object. 
The  heaven  is  of  a  fiery  and  subtile  nature,  round,  and 
equidistant  in  every  part,  as  a  canopy  from  the  centre 
of  the  earth.  It  turns  round  every  day  with  ineffable 
rapidity,  only  moderated  by  the  resistance  of  the  seven 
planets,  three  above  the  sun — Saturn,  Jupiter,  Mars — 
then  the  sun;  three  below — Venus,  Mercury,  the  moon. 
The  stars  go  round  in  their  fixed  courses,  the  northern 
perform  the  shortest  circle.  The  highest  heaven  has 
its  proper  limit;  it  contains  the  angelic  virtues  who  de- 
scend upon  earth,  assume  ethereal  bodies,  perform  hu- 
man functions,  and  return.  The  heaven  is  tempered 
with  glacial  waters,  lest  it  should  be  set  on  fire.  The 
inferior  heaven  is  called  the  firmament,  because  it  sepa- 
rates the  superincumbent  waters  from  the  waters  be- 


66  THE  PATRISTIC  PHILOSOPHY. 

low.  The  firmamental  waters  are  lower  than  the  spirit- 
ual heaven,  higher  than  all  corporeal  beings,  reserved, 
some  say,  for  a  second  deluge;  others,  more  truly,  to 
temper  the  fire  of  the  fixed  stars." 

Was  it  for  this  preposterous  scheme — this  product 
of  ignorance  and  audacity — that  the  works  of  the  Greek 
philosophers  were  to  be  given  up?  It  was  none  too 
soon  that  the  great  critics  who  appeared  at  the  Reforma- 
tion, by  comparing  the  works  of  these  writers  with  one 
another,  brought  them  to  their  proper  level,  and  taught 
us  to  look  upon  them  all  with  contempt. 

Of  this  presumptuous  system,  the  strangest  part  was 
its  logic,  the  nature  of  its  proofs.  It  relied  upon  mira- 
cle-evidence. A  fact  was  supposed  to  be  demonstrated 
by  an  astounding  illustration  of  something  else!  An 
Arabian  writer,  referring  to  this,  says:  "If  a  conjurer 
should  say  to  me, '  Three  are  more  than  ten,  and  in  proof 
of  it  I  will  change  this  stick  into  a  serpent,'  I  might  be 
surprised  at  his  legerdemain,  but  I  certainly  should  not 
admit  his  assertion."  Yet,  for  more  than  a  thousand 
years,  such  was  the  accepted  logic,  and  all  over  Europe 
propositions  equally  absurd  were  accepted  on  equally 
ridiculous  proof. 

Since  the  party  that  had  become  dominant  in  the 
empire  could  not  furnish  works  capable  of  intellectual 
competition  with  those  of  the  great  pagan  authors,  and 
since  it  was  impossible  for  it  to  accept  a  position  of  in- 
feriority, there  arose  a  political  necessity  for  the  dis- 
couragement, and  even  persecution,  of  profane  learn- 
ing. The  persecution  of  the  Platonists  under  Yalen- 
tinian  was  due  to  that  necessity.  They  were  accused 
of  magic,  and  many  of  them  were  put  to  death.  The 
profession  of  philosophy  had  become  dangerous — it  was 
a  state  crime.  In  its  stead  there  arose  a  passion  for  the 


THE  PATRISTIC   PHILOSOPHY.  67 

marvelous,  a  spirit  of  superstition.  Egypt  exchanged 
the  great  men,  who  had  made  her  Museum  immortal, 
for  bands  of  solitary  monks  and  sequestered  virgins, 
with  which  she  was  overrun. 


CHAPTER   III. 

CONFLICT  RESPECTING  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  THE  UNITY  OF 
GOD. — THE  FIRST  OR  SOUTHERN  REFORMATION. 

The  Egyptians  insist  on  the  introduction  of  the  worship  of  the 
Virgin  Mary. — They  are  resisted  by  Nestor,  the  Patriarch  of 
Constantinople,  but  eventually,  through  their  influence  with 
the  emperor,  cause  Nestor's  exile  and  the  dispersion  of  his 
followers. 

Prelude  to  the  Southern  Reformation. — The  Persian  attack;  its 
moral  effects. 

The  Arabian  Reformation. — Mohammed  is  brought  in  contact 
with  the  Nestorians. — He  adopts  and  extends  their  principles, 
rejecting  the  worship  of  the  Virgin,  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity, 
and  every  thing  in  opposition  to  the  unity  of  God. — He  extin- 
guishes idolatry  in  Arabia,  by  force,  and  prepares  to  make 
war  on  the  Roman  Empire. — His  successors  conquer  Syria, 
Egypt,  Asia  Minor,  North  Africa,  Spain,  and  invade  France. 

As  the  result  of  this  conflict,  the  doctrine  of  the  unity  of  God  was 
established  in  the  greater  part  of  the  Roman  Empire. — The 
cultivation  of  science  was  restored,  and  Christendom  lost  many 
of  her  most  illustrious  capitals,  as  Alexandria,  Carthage,  and, 
above  all,  Jerusalem. 

THE  policy  of  the  Byzantine  court  had  given  to 
primitive  Christianity  a  paganized  form,  which  it  had 
spread  over  all  the  idolatrous  populations  constituting 
the  empire.  There  had  heen  an  amalgamation  of  the 
two  parties.  Christianity  had  modified  paganism,  pagan- 
ism had  modified  Christianity.  The  limits  of  this  adul- 
terated religion  were  the  confines  of  the  Roman  Empire. 

With  this  great  extension  there  had  come  to  the 
68 


ECCLESIASTICAL  DISPUTES.  69 

Christian  party  political  influence  and  wealth.  No  in- 
significant portion  of  the  vast  public  revenues  found 
their  way  into  the  treasuries  of  the  Church.  As  under 
such  circumstances  must  ever  be  the  case,  there  were 
many  competitors  for  the  spoils — men  who,  under  the 
mask  of  zeal  for  the  predominant  faith,  sought  only  the 
enjoyment  of  its  emoluments. 

Under  the  early  emperors,  conquest  had  reached  its 
culmination;  the  empire  was  completed;  there  remained 
no  adequate  objects  for  military  life;  the  days  of  war- 
peculation,  and  the  plundering  of  provinces,  were  over. 
For  the  ambitious,  however,  another  path  was  open; 
other  objects  presented.  A  successful  career  in  the 
Church  led  to  results  not  unworthy  of  comparison  with 
those  that  in  former  days  had  been  attained  by  a  suc- 
cessful career  in  the  army. 

The  ecclesiastical,  and  indeed,  it  may  be  said,  much 
of  the  political  history  of  that  time,  turns  on  the  strug- 
gles of  the  bishops  of  the  three  great  metropolitan  cities 
— Constantinople,  Alexandria,  Rome — for  supremacy: 
Constantinople  based  her  claims  on  the  fact  that  she 
was  the  existing  imperial  city;  Alexandria  pointed  to 
her  commercial  and  literary  position;  Rome,  to  her 
souvenirs.  But  the  Patriarch  of  Constantinople  labored 
under  the  disadvantage  that  he  was  too  closely  under 
the  eye,  and,  as  he  found  to  his  cost,  too  often  under  the 
hand,  of  the  emperor.  Distance  gave  security  to  the 
episcopates  of  Alexandria  and  Rome. 

Religious  disputations  in  the  East  have  generally 
turned  on  diversities  of  opinion  respecting  the  nature 
and  attributes  of  God;  in  the  West,  on  the  relations  and 
life  of  man.  This  peculiarity  has  been  strikingly  mani- 
fested in  the  transformations  that  Christianity  has  under- 
gone in  Asia  and  Europe  respectively.  Accordingly, 
7 


70  ECCLESIASTICAL  DISPUTES. 

at  the  time  of  which  we  are  speaking,  all  the  Eastern 
provinces  of  the  Roman  Empire  exhibited  an  intellect- 
ual anarchy.  There  were  fierce  quarrels  respecting  the 
Trinity,  the  essence  of  God,  the  position  of  the  Son,  the 
nature  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  influences  of  the  Virgin 
Mary.  The  triumphant  clamor  first  of  one  then  of 
another  sect  was  confirmed,  sometimes  by  miracle-proof, 
sometimes  by  bloodshed.  No  attempt  was  ever  made 
to  submit  the  rival  opinions  to  logical  examination. 
All  parties,  however,  agreed  in  this,  that  the  imposture 
of  the  old  classical  pagan  forms  of  faith  was  demon- 
strated by  the  facility  with  which  they  had  been  over- 
thrown. The  triumphant  ecclesiastics  proclaimed  that 
the  images  of  the  gods  had  failed  to  defend  themselves 
when  the  time  of  trial  came. 

Polytheistic  ideas  have  always  been  held  in  repute 
by  the  southern  European  races,  the  Semitic  have  main- 
tained the  unity  of  God.  Perhaps  this  is  due  to  the 
fact,  as  a  recent  author  has  suggested,  that  a  diversified 
landscape  of  mountains  and  valleys,  islands,  and  rivers, 
and  gulfs,  predisposes  man  to  a  belief  in  a  multitude  of 
divinities.  A  vast  sandy  desert,  the  illimitable  ocean, 
impresses  him  with  an  idea  of  the  oneness  of  God. 

Political  reasons  had  led  the  emperors  to  look  with 
favor  on  the  admixture  of  Christianity  and  paganism, 
and  doubtless  by  this  means  the  bitterness  of  the  rivalry 
between  those  antagonists  was  somewhat  abated.  The 
heaven  of  the  popular,  the  fashionable  Christianity 
was  the  old  Olmypus,  from  which  the  venerable  Greek 
divinities  had  been  removed.  There,  on  a  great  white 
throne,  sat  God  the  Father,  on  his  right  the  Son,  and 
then  the  blessed  Virgin,  clad  in  a  golden  robe,  and 
"  covered  with  various  female  adornments; "  on  the 
left  sat  God  the  Holy  Ghost.  Surrounding  these 


EGYPTIAN  DOCTEINES.  71 

thrones  were  hosts  of  angels  with  their  harps.  The 
vast  expanse  beyond  was  filled  with  tables,  seated  at 
which  the  happy  spirits  of  the  just  enjoyed  a  perpetual 
banquet. 

If,  satisfied  with  this  picture  of  happiness,  illiterate 
persons  never  inquired  how  the  details  of  such  a  heaven 
were  carried  out,  or  how  much  pleasure  there  could  be 
in  the  ennui  of  such  an  eternally  unchanging,  unmov- 
ing  scene,  it  was  not  so  with  the  intelligent.  As  we  are 
soon  to  see,  there  were  among  the  higher  ecclesiastics 
those  who  rejected  with  sentiments  of  horror  these  car- 
nal, these  materialistic  conceptions,  and  raised  their  pro- 
testing voices  in  vindication  of  the  attributes  of  the 
Omnipresent,  the  Almighty  God. 

In  the  paganization  of  religion,  now  in  all  directions 
taking  place,  it  became  the  interest  of  every  bishop  to 
procure  an  adoption  of  the  ideas  which,  time  out  of 
mind,  had  been  current  in  the  community  under  his 
charge.  The  Egyptians  had  already  thus  forced  on  the 
Church  their  peculiar  Trinitarian  views;  and  now  they 
were  resolved  that,  under  the  form  of  the  adoration  of 
the  Virgin  Mary,  the  worship  of  Isis  should  be  restored. 

It  so  happened  that  Nestor,  the  Bishop  of  Antioch, 
who  entertained  the  philosophical  views  of  Theodore 
of  Mopsuestia,  had  been  called  by  the  Emperor  Theo- 
dosius  the  Younger  to  the  Episcopate  of  Constantinople 
(A.  D.  427).  Nestor  rejected  the  base  popular  anthro- 
pomorphism, looking  upon  it  as  little  better  than  blas- 
phemous, and  pictured  to  himself  an  awful  eternal  Di- 
vinity, who  pervaded  the  universe,  and  had  none  of  the 
aspects  or  attributes  of  man.  Nestor  was  deeply  imbued 
with  the  doctrines  of  Aristotle,  and  attempted  to  co- 
ordinate them  with  what  he  considered  to  be  orthodox 


72  THE  NESTOEIANS. 

Christian  tenets.  Between  him  and  Cyril,  the  Bishop 
or  Patriarch  of  Alexandria,  a  quarrel  accordingly  arose. 
Cyril  represented  the  paganizing,  Nestor  the  philoso- 
phizing party  of  the  Church.  This  was  that  Cyril  who 
had  murdered  Hypatia.  Cyril  was  determined  that  the 
worship  of  the  Virgin  as  the  Mother  of  God  should  be 
recognized,  Nestor  was  determined  that  it  should  not. 
In  a  sermon  delivered  in  the  metropolitan  church  at 
Constantinople,  he  vindicated  the  attributes  of  the  Eter- 
nal, the  Almighty  God.  "And  can  this  God  have  a 
mother?  "  he  exclaimed.  In  other  sermons  and  writ- 
ings, he  set  forth  with  more  precision  his  ideas  that 
the  Virgin  should  be  considered  not  as  the  Mother  of 
God,  but  as  the  mother  of  the  human  portion  of  Christ, 
that  portion  being  as  essentially  distinct  from  the  divine 
as  is  a  temple  from  its  contained  deity. 

Instigated  by  the  monks  of  Alexandria,  the  monks 
of  Constantinople  took  up  arms  in  behalf  of  "the 
Mother  of  God."  The  quarrel  rose  to  such  a  pitch  that 
the  emperor  was  constrained  to  summon  a  council  to 
meet  at  Ephesus.  In  the  mean  time  Cyril  had  given  a 
bribe  of  many  pounds  of  gold  to  the  chief  eunuch  of 
the  imperial  court,  and  had  thereby  obtained  the  influ- 
ence of  the  emperor's  sister.  "  The  holy  virgin  of  the 
court  of  heaven  thus  found  an  ally  of  her  own  sex  in 
the  holy  virgin  of  the  emperor's  court."  Cyril  hastened 
to  the  council,  attended  by  a  mob  of  men  and  women 
of  the  baser  sort.  He  at  once  assumed  the  presidency, 
and  in  the  midst  of  a  tumult  had  the  emperor's  rescript 
read  before  the  Syrian  bishops  could  arrive.  A  single 
day  served  to  complete  his  triumph.  All  offers  of  ac- 
commodation on  the  part  of  Nestor  were  refused,  his 
explanations  were  not  read,  he  was  condemned  unheard. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  Syrian  ecclesiastics,  a  meeting  of 


PERSECUTION  AND  DEATH  OP  NESTOE.         73 

protest  was  held  by  them.  A  riot,  with  much  blood- 
shed, ensued  in  the  cathedral  of  St.  John.  Nestor  was 
abandoned  by  the  court,  and  eventually  exiled  to  an 
Egyptian  oasis.  His  persecutors  tormented  him  as 
long  as  he  lived,  by  every  means  in  their  power,  and  at 
his  death  gave  out  that  "his  blasphemous  tongue  had 
been  devoured  by  worms,  and  that  from  the  heats  of  an 
Egyptian  desert  he  had  escaped  only  into  the  hotter 
torments  of  hell! " 

The  overthrow  and  punishment  of  Nestor,  however, 
by  no  means  destroyed  his  opinions.  He  and  his  fol- 
lowers, insisting  on  the  plain  inference  of  the  last  verse 
of  the  first  chapter  of  St.  Matthew,  together  with  the 
fifty-fifth  and  fifty-sixth  verses  of  the  thirteenth  of  the 
same  gospel,  could  never  be  brought  to  an  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  perpetual  virginity  of  the  new  queen  of 
heaven.  Their  philosophical  tendencies  were  soon  indi- 
cated by  their  actions.  While  their  leader  was  tormented 
in  an  African  oasis,  many  of  them  emigrated  to  the  Eu- 
phrates, and  established  the  Chaldean  Church.  Under 
their  auspices  the  college  of  Edessa  was  founded.  From 
the  college  of  Nisibis  issued  those  doctors  who  spread 
Nestor's  tenets  through  Syria,  Arabia,  India,  Tartary, 
China,  Egypt.  The  Nestorians,  of  course,  adopted  the 
philosophy  of  Aristotle,  and  translated  the  works  of 
that  great  writer  into  Syriac  and  Persian.  They  also 
made  similar  translations  of  later  works,  such  as  those 
of  Pliny.  In  connection  with  the  Jews  they  founded 
the  medical  college  of  Djondesabour.  Their  mission- 
aries disseminated  the  Nestorian  form  of  Christianity  to 
such  an  extent  over  Asia,  that  its  worshipers  eventually 
outnumbered  all  the  European  Christians  of  the  Greek 
and  Roman  Churches  combined.  It  may  be  particularly 
remarked  that  in  Arabia  they  had  a  bishop. 


Y4  THE  PERSIAN   CAMPAIGN. 

The  dissensions  between  Constantinople  and  Alex- 
andria had  thus  filled  all  Western  Asia  with  sectaries, 
ferocious  in  their  contests  with  each  other,  and  many 
of  them  burning  with  hatred  against  the  imperial  power, 
for  the  persecutions  it  had  inflicted  on  them.  A  reli- 
gious revolution,  the  consequences  of  which  are  felt  in 
our  own  times,  was  the  result.  It  affected  the  whole 
world. 

We  shall  gain  a  clear  view  of  this  great  event,  if  we 
consider  separately  the  two  acts  into  which  it  may  be 
decomposed:  1.  The  temporary  overthrow  of  Asiatic 
Christianity  by  the  Persians;  2.  The  decisive  and  final 
reformation  under  the  Arabians. 

1.  It  happened  (A.  D.  590)  that,  by  one  of  those  revo- 
lutions so  frequent  in  Oriental  courts,  Chosroes,  the 
lawful  heir  to  the  Persian  throne,  was  compelled  to  seek 
refuge  in  the  Byzantine  Empire,  and  implore  the  aid  of 
the  Emperor  Maurice.  That  aid  was  cheerfully  given. 
A  brief  and  successful  campaign  restored  Chosroes  to. 
the  throne  of  his  ancestors. 

But  the  glories  of  this  generous  campaign  could  not 
preserve  Maurice  himself.  A  mutiny  broke  out  in  the 
Eoman  army,  headed  by  Phocas,  a  centurion.  The 
statues  of  the  emperor  were  overthrown.  The  Patriarch 
of  Constantinople,  having  declared  that  he  had  assured 
himself  of  the  orthodoxy  of  Phocas,  consecrated  him 
emperor.  The  unfortunate  Maurice  was  dragged  from 
a  sanctuary,  in  which  he  had  sought  refuge;  his  five 
sons  were  beheaded  before  his  eyes,  and  then  he  was 
put  to  death.  His  empress  was  inveigled  from  the 
church  of  St.  Sophia,  tortured,  and  with  her  three  young 
daughters  beheaded.  The  adherents  of  the  massacred 
family  were  pursued  with  ferocious  vindictiveness;  of 
some  the  eyes  were  blinded,  of  others  the  tongues  were 


THE  EXPEDITION  OF  HERACL1US.  75 

torn  out,  or  the  feet  and  hands  cut  off;  some  were 
whipped  to  death,  others  were  burnt. 

When  the  news  reached  Rome,  Pope  Gregory  re- 
ceived it  with  exultation,  praying  that  the  hands  of 
Phocas  might  be  strengthened  against  all  his  enemies. 
As  an  equivalent  for  this  subserviency,  he  was  greeted 
with  the  title  of  "  Universal  Bishop."  The  cause  of  his 
action,  as  well  as  of  that  of  the  Patriarch  of  Constanti- 
nople, was  doubtless  the  fact  that  Maurice  was  suspected 
of  Magian  tendencies,  into  which  he  had  been  lured  by 
the  Persians.  The  mob  of  Constantinople  had  hooted 
after  him  in  the  streets,  branding  him  as  a  Marcionite, 
a  sect  which  believed  in  the  Magian  doctrine  of  two 
conflicting  principles. 

With  very  different  sentiments  Chosroes  heard  of 
the  murder  of  his  friend.  Phocas  had  sent  him  the 
heads  of  Maurice  and  his  sons.  The  Persian  king 
turned  from  the  ghastly  spectacle  with  horror,  and  at 
once  made  ready  to  avenge  the  wrongs  of  his  benefactor 
by  war. 

The  Exarch  of  Africa,  Heraclius,  one  of  the  chief 
officers  of  the  state,  also  received  the  shocking  tidings 
with  indignation.  He  was  determined  that  the  impe- 
rial purple  should  not  be  usurped  by  an  obscure  centu- 
rion of  disgusting  aspect.  "  The  person  of  this  Phocas 
was  diminutive  and  deformed;  the  closeness  of  his 
shaggy  eyebrows,  his  red  hair,  his  beardless  chin,  were 
in  keeping  with  his  cheek,  disfigured  and  discolored  by 
a  formidable  scar.  Ignorant  of  letters,  of  laws,  and  even 
of  arms,  he  indulged  in  an  ample  privilege  of  lust  and 
drunkenness."  At  first  Heraclius  refused  tribute  and 
obedience  to  him;  then,  admonished  by  age  and  infirmi- 
ties, he  committed  the  dangerous  enterprise  of  resist- 
ance to  his  son  of  the  same  name.  A  prosperous  voyage 


76  INVASION  OP  CHOSEOES. 

from  Carthage  soon  brought  the  younger  Heraclius  in 
front  of  Constantinople.  The  inconstant  clergy,  senate, 
and  people  of  the  city  joined  him,  the  usurper  was 
seized  in  his  palace  and  beheaded. 

But  the  revolution  that  had  taken  place  in  Constan- 
tinople did  not  arrest  the  movements  of  the  Persian 
king.  His  Magian  priests  had  warned  him  to  act  inde- 
pendently of  the  Greeks,  whose  superstition,  they  de- 
clared, was  devoid  of  all  truth  and  justice.  Chosroes, 
therefore,  crossed  the  Euphrates;  his  army  was  received 
with  transport  by  the  Syrian  sectaries,  insurrections  in 
his  favor  everywhere  breaking  out.  In  succession, 
Antioch,  Csssarea,  Damascus  fell;  Jerusalem  itself  was 
taken  by  storm;  the  sepulchre  of  Christ,  the  churches 
of  Constantine  and  of  Helena  were  given  to  the  flames; 
the  Savior's  cross  was  sent  as  a  trophy  to  Persia;  the 
churches  were  rifled  of  their  riches;  the  sacred  relics, 
collected  by  superstition,  were  dispersed.  Egypt  was  in- 
vaded, conquered,  and  annexed  to  the  Persian  Empire; 
the  Patriarch  of  Alexandria  escaped  by  flight  to  Cy- 
prus; the  African  coast  to  Tripoli  was  seized.  On  the 
north,  Asia  Minor  was  subdued,  and  for  ten  years  the 
Persian  forces  encamped  on  the  shores  of  the  Bosporus, 
in  front  of  Constantinople. 

In  his  extremity  Heraclius  begged  for  peace.  "I 
will  never  give  peace  to  the  Emperor  of  Rome,"  replied 
the  proud  Persian,  "  till  he  has  abjured  his  crucified 
God,  and  embraced  the  worship  of  the  sun."  After  a 
long  delay  terms  were,  however,  secured,  and  the  Roman 
Empire  was  ransomed  at  the  price  of  "  a  thousand  talents 
of  gold,  a  thousand  talents  of  silver,  a  thousand  silk 
robes,  a  thousand  horses,  and  a  thousand  virgins." 

But  Heraclius  submitted  only  for  a  moment.  He 
found  means  not  only  to  restore  his  affairs  but  to  retali- 


INVASION  OF  CHOSROES.  7f 

ate  on  the  Persian  Empire.  The  operations  by  which 
he  achieved  this  result  were  worthy  of  the  most  brill- 
iant days  of  Rome. 

Though  her  military  renown  was  thus  recovered, 
though  her  territory  was  regained,  there  was  something 
that  the  Roman  Empire  had  irrevocably  lost.  Reli- 
gious faith  could  never  be  restored.  In  face  of  the 
world  Magianism  had  insulted  Christianity,  by  profan- 
ing her  most  sacred  places — Bethlehem,  Gethsemane, 
Calvary — by  burning  the  sepulchre  of  Christ,  by  rifling 
and  destroying  the  churches,  by  scattering  to  the  winds 
priceless  relics,  by  carrying  off,  with  shouts  of  laughter, 
the  cross. 

Miracles  had  once  abounded  in  Syria,  in  Egypt,  in 
Asia  Minor;  there  was  not  a  church  which  had  not  its 
long  catalogue  of  them.  Very  often  they  were  displayed 
on  unimportant  occasions  and  in  insignificant  cases.  In 
this  supreme  monment,  when  such  aid  was  most  urgently 
demanded,  not  a  miracle  was  worked. 

Amazement  filled  the  Christian  populations  of  the 
East  when  they  witnessed  these  Persian  sacrileges  per- 
petrated with  impunity.  The  heavens  should  have 
rolled  asunder,  the  earth  should  have  opened  her 
abysses,  the  sword  of  the  Almighty  should  have  flashed 
in  the  sky,  the  fate  of  Sennacherib  should  have  been 
repeated.  But  it  was  not  so.  In  the  land  of  miracles, 
amazement  was  followed  by  consternation — consterna- 
tion died  out  in  disbelief. 

2.  But,  dreadful  as  it  was,  the  Persian  conquest  was 
but  a  prelude  to  the  great  event,  the  story  of  which 
we  have  now  to  relate — the  Southern  revolt  against 
Christianity.  Its  issue  was  the  loss  of  nine-tenths  of 
her  geographical  possessions — Asia,  Africa,  and  part  of 
Europe. 


78  MOHAMMED. 

In  the  summer  of  581  of  the  Christian  era,  there 
came  to  Bozrah,  a  town  on  the  confines  of  Syria,  south  of 
Damascus,  a  caravan  of  camels.  It  was  from  Mecca, 
and  was  laden  with  the  costly  products  of  South  Arabia 
— Arabia  the  Happy.  The  conductor  of  the  caravan, 
one  Abou  Taleb,  and  his  nephew,  a  lad  of  twelve  years, 
were  hospitably  received  and  entertained  at  the  Nesto- 
rian  convent  of  the  town. 

The  monks  of  this  convent  soon  found  that  their 
young  visitor,  Halibi  or  Mohammed,  was  the  nephew 
of  the  guardian  of  the  Caaba,  the  sacred  temple  of  the 
Arabs.  One  of  them,  by  name  Bahira,  spared  no 
pains  to  secure  his  conversion  from  the  idolatry  in 
which  he  had  been  brought  up.  He  found  the  boy  not 
only  precociously  intelligent,  but  eagerly  desirous  of 
information,  especially  on  matters  relating  to  religion. 

In  Mohammed's  own  country  the  chief  object  of 
Meccan  worship  was  a  black  meteoric  stone,  kept  in  the 
Caaba,  with  three  hundred  and  sixty  subordinate  idols, 
representing  the  days  of  the  year,  as  the  year  was  then 
counted. 

At  this  time,  as  we  have  seen,  the  Christian  Church, 
through  the  ambition  and  wickedness  of  its  clergy,  had 
been  brought  into  a  condition  of  anarchy.  Councils 
had  been  held  on  various  pretenses,  while  the  real  mo- 
tives were  concealed.  Too  often  they  were  scenes  of 
violence,  bribery,  corruption.  In  the  West,  such  were 
the  temptations  of  riches,  luxury,  and  power,  presented 
by  the  episcopates,  that  the  election  of  a  bishop  was 
often  disgraced  by  frightful  murders.  In  the  East,  in 
consequence  of  the  policy  of  the  court  of  Constanti- 
nople, the  Church  had  been  torn  in  pieces  by  contentions 
and  schisms.  Among  a  countless  host  of  disputants 
may  be  mentioned  Arians,  Basilidians,  Carpocratians, 


MOHAMMED.  79 

Collyridians,  Eutychians,  Gnostics,  Jacobites,  Marcion- 
ites,  Maronites,  Nestorians.  Sabellians,  Valentinians. 
Of  these,  the  Maronites  regarded  the  Trinity  as  consist- 
ing of  God  the  Father,  God  the  Son,  and  God  the  Vir- 
gin Mary;  the  Collyridians  worshiped  the  Virgin  as  a 
divinity,  offering  her  sacrifices  of  cakes;  the  Nestorians, 
as  we  have  seen,  denied  that  God  had  "  a  mother." 
They  prided  themselves  on  being  the  inheritors,  the 
possessors  of  the  science  of  old  Greece. 

But,  though  they  were  irreconcilable  in  matters  of 
faith,  there  was  one  point  in  which  all  these  sects  agreed 
— ferocious  hatred  and  persecution  of  each  other.  Ara- 
bia, an  unconquered  land  of  liberty,  stretching  from  the 
Indian  Ocean  to  the  Desert  of  Syria,  gave  them  all,  as 
the  tide  of  fortune  successively  turned,  a  refuge.  It  had 
been  so  from  the  old  times.  Thither,  after  the  Eoman 
conquest  of  Palestine,  vast  numbers  of  Jews  escaped; 
thither,  immediately  after  his  conversion,  St.  Paul  tells 
the  Galatians  that  he  retired.  The  deserts  were  now 
filled  with  Christian  anchorites,  and  among  the  chief 
tribes  of  the  Arabs  many  proselytes  had  been  made. 
Here  and  there  churches  had  been  built.  The  Christian 
princes  of  Abyssinia,  who  were  Nestorians,  held  the 
southern  province  of  Arabia — Yemen — in  possession. 

By  the  monk  Bahira,  in  the  convent  at  Bozrah,  Mo- 
hammed was  taught  the  tenets  of  the  Nestorians;  from 
them  the  young  Arab  learned  the  story  of  their  perse- 
cutions. It  was  these  interviews  which  engendered  in 
him  a  hatred  of  the  idolatrous  practices  of  the  Eastern 
Church,  and  indeed  of  all  idolatry;  that  taught  him,  in 
his  wonderful  career,  never  to  speak  of  Jesus  as  the  Son 
of  God,  but  always  as  "Jesus,  the  son  of  Mary."  His 
untutored  but  active  mind  could  not  fail  to  be  profound- 
ly impressed  not  only  with  the  religious  but  also  with 


80  MOHAMMED. 

the  philosophical  ideas  of  his  instructors,  who  gloried  in 
being  the  living  representatives  of  Aristotelian  science. 
His  subsequent  career  shows  how  completely  their  reli- 
gious thoughts  had  taken  possession  of  him,  and  repeated 
acts  manifest  his  affectionate  regard  for  them.  His 
own  life  was  devoted  to  the  expansion  and  extension 
of  their  theological  cfoctrine,  and,  that  once  effectually 
established,  his  successors  energetically  adopted  and  dif- 
fused their  scientific,  their  Aristotelian  opinions. 

As  Mohammed  grew  to  manhood,  he  made  other 
expeditions  to  Syria.  Perhaps,  we  may  suppose,  that 
on  these  occasions  the  convent  and  its  hospitable  in- 
mates were  not  forgotten.  He  had  a  mysterious  rev- 
erence for  that  country.  A  wealthy  Meccan  widow, 
Chadizah,  had  intrusted  him  with  the  care  of  her  Syrian 
trade.  She  was  charmed  with  his  capacity  and  fidelity, 
and  (since  he  is  said  to  have  been  characterized  by  the 
possession  of  singular  manly  beauty  and  a  most  courte- 
ous demeanor)  charmed  with  his  person.  The  female 
heart  in  all  ages  and  countries  is  the  same.  She  caused 
a  slave  to  intimate  to  him  what  was  passing  in  her 
mind,  and,  for  the  remaining  twenty-four  years  of  her 
life,  Mohammed  was  her  faithful  husband.  In  a  land 
of  polygamy,  he  never  insulted  her  by  the  presence  of 
a  rival.  Many  years  subsequently,  in  the  height  of  his 
power,  Ayesha,  who  was  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
women  in  Arabia,  said  to  him:  "  Was  she  not  old?  Did 
not  God  give  you  in  me  a  better  wife  in  her  place?" 
"  No,  by  God!  "  exclaimed  Mohammed,  and  with  a  burst 
of  honest  gratitude,  "  there  never  can  be  a  better.  She 
believed  in  me  when  men  despised  me,  she  relieved  me 
when  I  was  poor  and  persecuted  by  the  world." 

His  marriage  with  Chadizah  placed  him  in  circum- 
stances of  ease,  and  gave  him  an  opportunity  of  indulg- 


MOHAMMED.  81 

ing  his  inclination  to  religious  meditation.  It  so  hap- 
pened that  her  cousin,  Waraka,  who  was  a  Jew,  had 
turned  Christian.  He  was  the  first  to  translate  the 
Bible  into  Arabic.  By  his  conversation  Mohammed's 
detestation  of  idolatry  was  confirmed. 

After  the  example  of  the  Christian  anchorites  in 
their  hermitages  in  the  desert,  Mohammed  retired  to 
a  grotto  in  Mount  Hera,  a  few  miles  from  Mecca,  giving 
himself  up  to  meditation  and  prayer.  In  this  seclusion, 
contemplating  the  awful  attributes  of  the  Omnipotent 
and  Eternal  God,  he  addressed  to  his  conscience  the 
solemn  inquiry,  whether  he  could  adopt  the  dogmas 
then  held  in  Asiatic  Christendom  respecting  the  Trin- 
ity, the  sonship  of  Jesus  as  begotten  by  the  Almighty, 
the  character  of  Mary  as  at  once  a  virgin,  a  mother,  and 
the  queen  of  heaven,  without  incurring  the  guilt  and 
the  peril  of  blasphemy. 

By  his  solitary  meditations  in  the  grotto  Mohammed 
was  drawn  to  the  conclusion  that,  through  the  cloud  of 
dogmas  and  disputations  around  him,  one  great  truth 
might  be  discerned — the  unity  of  God.  Leaning  against 
the  stem  of  a  palm-tree,  he  unfolded  his  views  on  this 
subject  to  his  neighbors  and  friends,  and  announced  to 
them  that  he  should  dedicate  his  life  to  the  preaching 
of  that  truth.  Again  and  again,  in  his  sermons  and  in 
the  Koran,  he  declared:  "  I  am  nothing  but  a  public 
preacher.  ...  I  preach  the  oneness  of  God."  Such  was 
his  own  conception  of  his  so-called  apostleship.  Hence- 
forth, to  the  day  of  his  death,  he  wore  on  his  finger  a 
seal-ring  on  which  was  engraved,  "  Mohammed,  the 
messenger  of  God." 

It  is  well  known  among  physicians  that  prolonged 
fasting  and  mental  anxiety  inevitably  give  rise  to  hal- 
lucination. Perhaps  there  never  has  been  any  religious 


82  VICTORIES  OF  MOHAMMED. 

system  introduced  by  self-denying,  earnest  men  that  did 
not  offer  examples  of  supernatural  temptations  and 
supernatural  commands.  Mysterious  voices  encouraged 
the  Arabian  preacher  to  persist  in  his  determination; 
shadows  of  strange  forms  passed  before  him.  He  heard 
sounds  in  the  air  like  those  of  a  distant  bell.  In  a 
nocturnal  dream  he  was  carried  by  Gabriel  from  Mecca 
to  Jerusalem,  and  thence  in  succession  through  the  six 
heavens.  Into  the  seventh  the  angel  feared  to  intrude, 
and  Mohammed  alone  passed  into  the  dread  cloud  that 
forever  enshrouds  the  Almighty.  "  A  shiver  thrilled 
his  heart  as  he  felt  upon  his  shoulder  the  touch  of  the 
cold  hand  of  God." 

His  public  ministrations  met  with  much  resistance, 
and  little  success  at  first.  Expelled  from  Mecca  by  the 
upholders  of  the  prevalent  idolatry,  he  sought  refuge  in 
Medina,  a  town  in  which  there  were  many  Jews  and 
Nestorians;  the  latter  at  once  became  proselytes  to  his 
faith.  He  had  already  been  compelled  to  send  his 
daughter  and  others  of  his  disciples  to  Abyssinia,  the 
king  of  which  was  a  Nestorian  Christian.  At  the  end 
of  six  years  he  had  made  only  fifteen  hundred  converts. 
But  in  three  little  skirmishes,  magnified  in  subsequent 
times  by  the  designation  of  the  battles  of  Beder,  of 
Ohud,  and  of  the  Nations,  Mohammed  discovered  that 
his  most  convincing  argument  was  his  sword.  After- 
ward, with  Oriental  eloquence,  he  said,  "  Paradise  will 
be  found  in  the  shadow  of  the  crossing  of  swords."  By 
a  series  of  well-conducted  military  operations,  his  ene- 
mies were  completely  overthrown.  Arabian  idolatry 
was  absolutely  exterminated;  the  doctrine  he  proclaimed, 
that  "there  is  but  one  God,"  was  universally  adopted 
by  his  countrymen,  and  his  own  apostleship  accepted. 

Let  us  pass  over  his_stormy  life,  and  hear  what  he 


DEATH  OP  MOHAMMED.  83 

says  when,  on  the  pinnacle  of  earthly  power  and  glory, 
he  was  approaching  its  close. 

Steadfast  in  his  declaration  of  the  unity  of  God,  he 
departed  from  Medina  on  his  last  pilgrimage  to  Mecca, 
at  the  head  of  one  hundred  and  fourteen  thousand  dev- 
otees, with  camels  decorated  with  garlands  of  flowers 
and  fluttering  streamers.  When  he  approached  the 
holy  city,  he  uttered  the  solemn  invocation:  "  Here  am 
I  in  thy  service,  0  God!  Thou  hast  no  companion. 
To  thee  alone  belongeth  worship.  Thine  alone  is  the 
kingdom.  There  is  none  to  share  it  with  thee." 

With  his  own  hand  he  offered  up  the  camels  in 
sacrifice.  He  considered  that  primeval  institution  to 
he  equally  sacred  as  prayer,  and  that  no  reason  can  be 
alleged  in  support  of  the  one  which  is  not  equally  strong 
in  support  of  the  other. 

From  the  pulpit  of  the  Caaba  he  reiterated,  "  0  my 
hearers,  I  am  only  a  man  like  yourselves."  They  re- 
membered that  he  had  once  said  to  one  who  approached 
him  with  timid  steps:  "  Of  what  dost  thou  stand  in  awe? 
I  am  no  king.  I  am  nothing  but  the  son  of  an  Arab 
woman,  who  ate  flesh  dried  in  the  sun." 

He  returned  to  Medina  to  die.  In  his  farewell 
to  his  congregation,  he  said:  "Every  thing  happens 
according  to  the  will  of  God,  and  has  its  appointed 
time,  which  can  neither  be  hastened  nor  avoided.  I  re- 
turn to  him  who  sent  me,  and  my  last  command  to  you 
is,  that  ye  love,  honor,  and  uphold  each  other,  that  ye 
exhort  each  "other  to  faith  and  constancy  in  belief,  and 
to  the  performance  of  pious  deeds.  My  life  has  been 
for  your  good,  and  so  will  be  my  death." 

In  his  dying  agony,  his  head  was  reclined  on  the  lap 
of  Ayesha.  From  time  to  time  he  had  dipped  his  hand 
in  a  vase  of  water,  and  moistened  his  face.  At  last  he 


84  DOCTRINES  OF  MOHAMMED. 

ceased,  and,  gazing  steadfastly  upward,  said,  in  broken 
accents:  "  0  God — forgive  my  sins — be  it  so.  I  come." 

Shall  we  speak  of  this  man  with  disrespect?  His 
precepts  are,  at  this  day,  the  religious  guide  of  one- 
third  of  the  human  race. 

In  Mohammed,  who  had  already  broken  away  from 
the  ancient  idolatrous  worship  of  his  native  country, 
preparation  had  been  made  for  the  rejection  of  those 
tenets  which  his  Nestorian  teachers  had  communicated 
to  him,  inconsistent  with  reason  and  conscience.  And 
though,  in  the  first  pages  of  the  Koran,  he  declares  his 
belief  in  what  was  delivered  to  Moses  and  Jesus,  and 
his  reverence  for  them  personally,  his  veneration  for 
the  Almighty  is  perpetually  displayed.  He  is  horror- 
stricken  at  the  doctrine  of  the  divinity  of  Jesus,  the 
worship  of  Mary  as  the  mother  of  God,  the  adoration 
of  images  and  paintings,  in  his  eyes  a  base  idolatry. 
He  absolutely  rejects  the  Trinity,  of  which  he  seems 
to  have  entertained  the  idea  that  it  could  not  be  in- 
terpreted otherwise  than  as  presenting  three  distinct 
Gods. 

His  first  and  ruling  idea  was  simply  religious  reform 
— to  overthrow  Arabian  idolatry,  and  put  an  end  to  the 
wild  sectarianism  of  Christianity.  That  he  proposed  to 
set  up  a  new  religion  was  a  calumny  invented  against 
him  in  Constantinople,  where  he  was  looked  upon  with 
detestation,  like  that  with  which  in  after  ages  Luther 
was  regarded  in  Eome. 

But,  though  he  rejected  with  indignation  whatever 
might  seem  to  disparage  the  doctrine  of  the  unity  of 
God,  he  was  not  able  to  emancipate  himself  from  an- 
thropomorphic conceptions.  The  God  of  the  Koran  is 
altogether  human,  both  corporeally  and  mentally,  if  such 
expressions  may  with  propriety  be  used.  Very  soon, 


THE  FIRST  KHALIF.  85 

however,  the  followers  of  Mohammed  divested  them- 
selves of  these  base  ideas  and  rose  to  nobler  ones. 

The  view  here  presented  of  the  primitive  character 
of  Mohammedanism  has  long  been  adopted  by  many 
competent  authorities.  Sir  William  Jones,  following 
Locke,  regards  the  main  point  in  the  divergence  of  Mo- 
hammedanism from  Christianity  to  consist  "  in  denying 
vehemently  the  character  of  our  Savior  as  the  Son, 
and  his  equality  as  God  with  the  Father,  of  whose 
unity  and  attributes  the  Mohammedans  entertain  and 
express  the  most  awful  ideas."  This  opinion  has  been 
largely  entertained  in  Italy.  Dante  regarded  Moham- 
med only  as  the  author  of  a  schism,  and  saw  in  Islam- 
ism  only  an  Arian  sect.  In  England,  Whately  views  it 
as  a  corruption  of  Christianity.  It  was  an  offshoot  of 
Nestorianism,  and  not  until  it  had  overthrown  Greek 
Christianity  in  many  great  battles,  was  spreading  rapid- 
ly over  Asia  and  Africa,  and  had  become  intoxicated 
with  its  wonderful  successes,  did  it  repudiate  its  primi- 
tive limited  intentions,  and  assert  itself  to  be  founded 
on  a  separate  and  distinct  revelation. 

Mohammed's  life  had  been  almost  entirely  consumed 
in  the  conversion  or  conquest  of  his  native  country. 
Toward  its  close,  however,  he  felt  himself  strong  enough 
to  threaten  the  invasion  of  Syria  and  Persia.  He  had 
made  no  provision  for  the  perpetuation  of  his  own  do- 
minion, and  hence  it  was  not  without  a  struggle  that 
a  successor  was  appointed.  At  length  Abubeker,  the 
father  of  Ayesha,  was  selected.  He  was  proclaimed 
the  first  khalif,  or  successor  of  the  Prophet. 

There  is  a  very  important  difference  between  the 
spread  of  Mohammedanism  and  the  spread  of  Christi- 
anity. The  latter  was  never  sufficiently  strong  to  over- 
throw and  extirpate  idolatry  in  the  Roman  Empire.  As 
8 


86  THE  MOHAMMEDAN  HEAVEN. 

it  advanced,  there  was  an  amalgamation,  a  union.  The 
old  forms  of  the  one  were  vivified  by  the  new  spirit  of 
the  other,  and  that  paganization  to  which  reference  has 
already  been  made  was  the  result. 

But,  in  Arabia,  Mohammed  overthrew  and  absolute- 
ly annihilated  the  old  idolatry.  No  trace  of  it  is  found 
in  the  doctrines  preached  by  him  and  his  successors. 
The  black  stone  that  had  fallen  from  heaven — the  me- 
teorite of  the  Caaba — and  its  encircling  idols,  passed 
totally  out  of  view.  The  essential  dogma  of  the  new 
faith — "  There  is  but  one  God  " — spread  without  any 
adulteration.  Military  successes  had,  in  a  worldly  sense, 
made  the  religion  of  the  Koran  profitable;  and,  no  mat- 
ter what  dogmas  may  be,  when  that  is  the  case,  there 
will  be  plenty  of  converts. 

As  to  the  popular  doctrines  of  Mohammedanism, 
I  shall  here  have  nothing  to  say.  The  reader  who  is 
interested  in  that  matter  will  find  an  account  of  them 
in  a  review  of  the  Koran  in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  my 
"  History  of  the  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe." 
It  is  enough  now  to  remark  that  their  heaven  was  ar- 
ranged in  seven  stories,  and  was  only  a  palace  of  Orien- 
tal carnal  delight.  It  was  filled  with  black-eyed  concu- 
bines and  servants.  The  form  of  God  was,  perhaps, 
more  awful  than  that  of  paganized  Christianity.  An- 
thropomorphism will,  however,  never  be  obliterated 
from  the  ideas  of  the  unintellectual.  Their  God,  at 
the  best,  will  never  be  any  thing  more  than  the  gigan- 
tic shadow  of  a  man — a  vast  phantom  of  humanity — 
like  one  of  those  Alpine  spectres  seen  in  the  midst  of 
the  clouds  by  him  who  turns  his  back  on  the  sun. 

Abubeker  had  scarcely  seated  himself  in  the  khalif- 
ate,  when  he  put  forth  the  following  proclamation: 

"  In  the  name  of  the  most  merciful  God!    Abubeker 


INVASION  OP  SYRIA.  87 

to  the  rest  of  the  true  believers,  health  and  happiness. 
The  mercy  and  blessing  of  God  be  upon  you.  I  praise 
the  most  high  God.  I  pray  for  his  prophet  Moham- 
med. 

"  This  is  to  inform  you  that  I  intend  to  send  the 
true  believers  into  Syria,  to  take  it  out  of  the  hands  of 
the  infidels.  And  I  would  have  you  know  that  the 
fighting  for  religion  is  an  act  of  obedience  to  God." 

On  the  first  encounter,  Khaled,  the  Saracen  general, 
hard  pressed,  lifted  up  his  hands  in  the  midst  of  his 
army  and  said:  "  0  God!  these  vile  wretches  pray  with 
idolatrous  expressions  and  take  to  themselves  another 
God  besides  thee,  but  we  acknowledge  thy  unity  and 
affirm  that  there  is  no  other  God  but  thee  alone.  Help 
us,  we  beseech  thee,  for  the  sake  of  thy  prophet  Mo- 
hammed, against  these  idolaters."  On  the  part  of  the 
Saracens  the  conquest  of  Syria  was  conducted  with 
ferocious  piety.  The  belief  of  the  Syrian  Christians 
aroused  in  their  antagonists  sentiments  of  horror  and 
indignation.  "  I  will  cleave  the  skull  of  any  blasphem- 
ing idolater  who  says  that  the  Most  Holy  God,  the  Al- 
mighty and  Eternal,  has  begotten  a  son."  The  Khalif 
Omar,  who  took  Jerusalem,  commences  a  letter  to  He- 
raclius,  the  Eoman  emperor:  "  In  the  name  of  the  most 
merciful  God!  Praise  be  to  God,  the  Lord  of  this  and 
of  the  other  world,  who  has  neither  female  consort  nor 
son."  The  Saracens  nicknamed  the  Christians  "Asso- 
ciators,"  because  they  joined  Mary  and  Jesus  as  part- 
ners with  the  Almighty  and  Most  Holy  God. 

It  was  not  the  intention  of  the  khalif  to  command 
his  army;  that  duty  was  devolved  on  Abou  Obeidah 
nominally,  on  Khaled  in  reality.  In  a  parting  review 
the  khalif  enjoined  on  his  troops  justice,  mercy,  and  the 
observance  of  fidelity  in  their  engagements;  he  com- 


88  FALL  OF  BOZRAH. 

manded  them  to  abstain  from  all  frivolous  conversation 
and  from  wine,  and  rigorously  to  observe  the  hours  of 
prayer;  to  be  kind  to  the  common  people  among  whom 
they  passed,  but  to  show  no  mercy  to  their  priests. 

Eastward  of  the  river  Jordan  is  Bozrah,  a  strong 
town  where  Mohammed  had  first  met  his  Nestorian 
Christian  instructors.  It  was  one  of  the  Roman  forts 
with  which  the  country  was  dotted  over.  Before  this 
place  the  Saracen  army  encamped.  The  garrison  was 
strong,  the  ramparts  were  covered  with  holy  crosses 
and  consecrated  banners.  It  might  have  made  a  long 
defense.  But  its  governor,  Romanus,  betrayed  his  trust, 
and  stealthily  opened  its  gates  to  the  besiegers.  His 
conduct  shows  to  what  a  deplorable  condition  the  popu- 
lation of  Syria  had  come.  After  the  surrender,  in  a 
speech  he  made  to  the  people  he  had  betrayed,  he  said: 
"  I  renounce  your  society,  both  in  this  world  and  that 
to  come.  And  I  deny  him  that  was  crucified,  and 
whosoever  worships  him.  And  I  choose  God  for  my 
Lord,  Islam  for  my  faith,  Mecca  for  my  temple,  the 
Moslems  for  my  brethren,  Mohammed  for  my  prophet, 
who  was  sent  to  lead  us  in  the  right  way,  and  to  exalt 
the  true  religion  in  spite  of  those  who  join  partners 
with  God."  Since  the  Persian  invasion,  Asia  Minor, 
Syria,  and  even  Palestine,  were  full  of  traitors  and 
apostates,  ready  to  join  the  Saracens.  Romanus  was  but 
one  of  many  thousands  who  had  fallen  into  disbelief 
through  the  victories  of  the  Persians. 

From  Bozrah  it  was  only  seventy  miles  northward 
to  Damascus,  the  capital  of  Syria.  Thither,  without  de- 
lay, the  Saracen  army  marched.  The  city  was  at  once 
summoned  to  take  its  option — conversion,  tribute,  or  the 
sword.  In  his  place  at  Antioch,  barely  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  still  farther  north,  the  Emperor  Heraclius 


FALL  OP  DAMASCUS.  89 

received  tidings  of  the  alarming  advance  of  his  assail- 
ants. He  at  once  dispatched  an  army  of  seventy  thou- 
sand men.  The  Saracens  were  compelled  to  raise  the 
siege.  A  battle  took  place  in  the  plains  of  Aiznadin, 
the  Eoman  army  was  overthrown  and  dispersed.  Kha- 
led  reappeared  before  Damascus  with  his  standard  of 
the  black  eagle,  and  after  a  renewed  investment  of  sev- 
enty days  Damascus  surrendered. 

From  the  Arabian  historians  of  these  events  we  may 
gather  that  thus  far  the  Saracen  armies  were  little  bet- 
ter than  a  fanatic  mob.  Many  of  the  men  fought  naked. 
It  was  not  unusual  for  a  warrior  to  stand  forth  in  front 
and  challenge  an  antagonist  to  mortal  duel.  Nay,  more, 
even  the  women  engaged  in  the  combats.  Picturesque 
narratives  have  been  handed  down  to  us  relating  the 
gallant  manner  in  which  they  acquitted  themselves. 

From  Damascus  the  Saracen  army  advanced  north- 
ward, guided  by  the  snow-clad  peaks  of  Libanus  and 
the  beautiful  river  Orontes.  It  captured  on  its  way 
Baalbec,  the  capital  of  the  Syrian  valley,  and  Emesa, 
the  chief  city  of  the  eastern  plain.  To  resist  its  further 
progress,  Heraclius  collected  an  army  of  one  hundred 
and  forty  thousand  men.  A  battle  took  place  at  Yer- 
muck;  the  right  wing  of  the  Saracens  was  broken,  but 
the  soldiers  were  driven  back  to  the  field  by  the  fanatic 
expostulations  of  their  women.  The  conflict  ended  in 
the  complete  overthrow  of  the  Roman  army.  Forty 
thousand  were  taken  prisoners,  and  a  vast  number 
killed.  The  whole  country  now  lay  open  to  the  victors. 
The  advance  of  their  army  had  been  east  of  the  Jordan. 
It  was  clear  that,  before  Asia  Minor  could  be  touched, 
the  strong  and  important  cities  of  Palestine,  which  was 
now  in  their  rear,  must  be  secured.  There  was  a  dif- 
ference of  opinion  among  the  generals  in  the  field  as 


90  FALL  OF  JERUSALEM. 

to  whether  Csesarea  or  Jerusalem  should  be  assailed 
first.  The  matter  was  referred  to  the  khalif,  who,  right- 
ly preferring  the  moral  advantages  of  the  capture  of 
Jerusalem  to  the  military  advantages  of  the  capture  of 
Cassarea,  ordered  the  Holy  City  to  be  taken,  and  that 
at  any  cost.  Close  siege  was  therefore  laid  to  it.  The 
inhabitants,  remembering  the  atrocities  inflicted  by  the 
Persians,  and  the  indignities  that  had  been  offered  to 
the  Savior's  sepulchre,  prepared  now  for  a  vigorous 
defense.  But,  after  an  investment  of  four  months,  the 
Patriarch  Sophronius  appeared  on  the  wall,  asking  terms 
of  capitulation.  There  had  been  misunderstandings 
among  the  generals  at  the  capture  of  Damascus,  fol- 
lowed by  a  massacre  of  the  fleeing  inhabitants.  Sophro- 
nius, therefore,  stipulated  that  the  surrender  of  Jeru- 
salem should  take  place  in  presence  of  the  khalif  himself. 
Accordingly,  Omar,  the  khalif,  came  from  Medina  for 
that  purpose.  He  journeyed  on  a  red  camel,  carrying 
a  bag  of  corn  and  one  of  dates,  a  wooden  dish,  and  a 
leathern  water-bottle.  The  Arab  conqueror  entered  the 
Holy  City  riding  by  the  side  of  the  Christian  patriarch, 
and  the  transference  of  the  capital  of  Christianity  to 
the  representative  of  Mohammedanism  was  effected 
without  tumult  or  outrage.  Having  ordered  that  a 
mosque  should  be  built  on  the  site  of  the  temple  of 
Solomon,  the  khalif  returned  to  the  tomb  of  the  Proph- 
et at  Medina. 

Heraclius  saw  plainly  that  the  disasters  which  were 
fast  settling  on  Christianity  were  due  to  the  dissensions 
of  its  conflicting  sects;  and  hence,  while  he  endeavored 
to  defend  the  empire  with  his  armies,  he  sedulously 
tried  to  compose  those  differences.  With  this  view  he 
pressed  Tor  acceptance  the  Monothelite  doctrine  of  the 
nature  of  Christ.  But  it  was  now  too  late.  Aleppo  and 


FALL  OF  JERUSALEM.  91 

Antioch  were  taken.  Nothing  could  prevent  the  Sara- 
cens from  overrunning  Asia  Minor.  Heraclius  himself 
had  to  seek  safety  in  flight.  Syria,  which  had  been 
added  by  Pompey  the  Great,  the  rival  of  Cassar,  to  the 
provinces  of  Kome,  seven  hundred  years  previously — 
Syria,  the  birthplace  of  Christianity,  the  scene  of  its 
most  sacred  and  precious  souvenirs,  the  land  from 
which  Heraclius  himself  had  once  expelled  the  Persian 
intruder — was  irretrievably  lost.  Apostates  and  traitors 
had  wrought  this  .calamity.  We  are  told  that,  as  the 
ship  which  bore  him  to  Constantinople  parted  from  the 
shore,  Heraclius  gazed  intently  on  the  receding  hills, 
and  in  the  bitterness  of  anguish  exclaimed,  "  Farewell, 
Syria,  forever  farewell! " 

It  is  needless  to  dwell  on  the  remaining  details  of 
the  Saracen  conquest:  haw  Tripoli  and  Tyre  were  be- 
trayed; how  Ca3sarea  was  captured;  how  with  the  trees 
of  Libanus  and  the  sailors  of  Phoenicia  a  Saracen  fleet 
was  equipped,  which  drove  the  Eoman  navy  into  the  Hel- 
lespont; how  Cyprus,  Rhodes,  and  the  Cyclades,  were 
ravaged,  and  the  Colossus,  which  was  counted  as  one 
of  the  wonders  of  the  world,  sold  to  a  Jew,  who  loaded 
nine  hundred  camels  with  its  brass;  how  the  armies  of 
the  khalif  advanced  to  the  Black  Sea,  and  even  lay  in 
front  of  Constantinople — all  this  was  as  nothing  after 
the  fall  of  Jerusalem. 

The  fall  of  Jerusalem!  the  loss  of  the  metropolis  of 
Christianity!  In  the  ideas  of  that  age  the  two  antago- 
nistic forms  of  faith  had  submitted  themselves  to  the 
ordeal  of  the  judgment  of  God.  Victory  had  awarded 
the  prize  of  battle,  Jerusalem,  to  the  Mohammedan; 
and,  notwithstanding  the  temporary  successes  of  the 
Crusaders,  after  much  more  than  a  thousand  years  in  his 
hands  it  remains  to  this  day.  The  Byzantine  historians 


92  OVERTHROW  OP  THE  PERSIANS. 

are  not  without  excuse  for  the  course  they  are  con- 
demned for  taking:  "  They  have  wholly  neglected  the 
great  topic  of  the  ruin  of  the  Eastern  Church."  And 
as  for  the  Western  Church,  even  the  debased  popes  of 
the  middle  ages — the  ages  of  the  Crusades — could  not 
see  without  indignation  that  they  were  compelled  to 
rest  the  claims  of  Eome  as  the  metropolis  of  Christen- 
dom on  a  false  legendary  story  of  a  visit  of  St.  Peter  to 
that  city;  while  the  true  metropolis,  the  grand,  the 
sacred  place  of  the  birth,  the  life,  the  death  of  Christ 
himself,  was  in  the  hands  of  the  infidels!  It  has  not  been 
the  Byzantine  historians  alone  who  have  tried  to  conceal 
this  great  catastrophe.  The  Christian  writers  of  Europe 
on  all  manner  of  subjects,  whether  of  history,  religion, 
or  science,  have  followed  a  similar  course  against  their 
conquering  antagonists.  It  has  been  their  constant 
pratice  to  hide  what  they  could  not  depreciate,  and  de- 
preciate what  they  could  not  hide. 

I  have  not  space,  nor  indeed  does  it  comport  with 
the  intention  of  this  work,  to  relate,  in  such  detail  as  I 
have  given  to  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  other  conquests  of 
the  Saracens — conquests  which  eventually  established  a 
Mohammedan  empire  far  exceeding  in  geographical  ex- 
tent that  of  Alexander,  and  even  that  of  Eome.  But, 
devoting  a  few  words  to  this  subject,  it  may  be  said 
that  Magianism  received  a  worse  blow  than  that  which 
had  been  inflicted  on  Christianity.  The  fate  of  Persia 
was  settled  at  the  battle  of  Cadesia.  At  the  sack 
of  Ctesiphon,  the  treasury,  the  royal  arms,  and  an  un- 
limited spoil,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Saracens.  Not 
without  reason  do  they  call  the  battle  of  Nehavend 
"the  victory  of  victories."  In  one  direction  they  ad- 
vanced to  the  Caspian,  in  the  other  southward  along 
the  Tigris  to  Persepolis.  The  Persian  king  fled  for  his 


INVASION  OF  EGYPT.  93 

life  over  the  great  Salt  Desert,  from  the  columns  and 
statues  of  that  city  which  had  lain  in  ruins  since  the 
night  of  the  riotous  banquet  of  Alexander.  One  di- 
vision of  the  Arabian  army  forced  the  Persian  monarch 
over  the  Oxus.  He  was  assassinated  by  the  Turks. 
His  son  was  driven  into  China,  and  became  a  captain  in 
the  Chinese  emperor's  guards.  The  country  beyond  the 
Oxus  was  reduced.  It  paid  a  tribute  of  two  million 
pieces  of  gold.  While  the  emperor  at  Peking  was  de- 
manding the  friendship  of  the  khalif  at  Medina,  the 
standard  of  the  Prophet  was  displayed  on  the  banks  of 
the  Indus. 

Among  the  generals  who  had  greatly  distinguished 
themselves  in  the  Syrian  wars  was  Amrou,  destined  to 
be  the  conqueror  of  Egypt;  for  the  khalif s,  not  content 
with  their  victories  on  the  J^orth  and  East,  now  turned 
their  eyes  to  the  West,  and  prepared  for  the  annexation 
of  Africa.  As  in  the  former  cases,  so  in  this,  sectarian 
treason  assisted  then.  The  Saracen  army  was  hailed  as 
the  deliverer  of  the  Jacobite  Church;  the  Monophysite 
Christians  of  Egypt,  that  is,  they  who,  in  the  language  of 
the  Athanasian  Creed,  confounded  the  substance  of  the 
Son,  proclaimed,  through  their  leader,  Mokaukas,  that 
they  desired  no  communion  with  the  Greeks,  either  in 
this  world  or  the  next,  that  they  abjured  forever  the 
Byzantine  tyrant  and  his  synod  of  Chalcedon.  They 
hastened  to  pay  tribute  to  the  khalif,  to  repair  the  roads 
and  bridges,  and  to  supply  provisions  and  intelligence 
to  the  invading  army. 

Memphis,  one  of  the  old  Pharaonic  capitals,  soon 
fell,  and  Alexandria  was  invested.  The  open  sea  behind 
gave  opportunity  to  Heraclius  to  reenforce  the  garrison 
continually.  On  his  part,  Omar,  who  was  now  khalif, 
sent  to  the  succor  of  the  besieging  army  the  veteran 


94r  FALL  OF  ALEXANDRIA. 

troops  of  Syria.  There  were  many  assaults  and  many 
sallies.  In  one  Amrou  himself  was  taken  prisoner  by 
the  besieged,  but,  through  the  dexterity  of  a  slave,  made 
his  escape.  After  a  siege  of  fourteen  months,  and  a  loss 
of  twenty-three  thousand  men,  the  Saracens  captured 
the  city.  In  his  dispatch  to  the  khalif,  Amrou  enu- 
merated the  splendors  of  the  great  city  of  the  West, 
"its  four  thousand  palaces,  four  thousand  baths,  four 
hundred  theatres,  twelve  thousand  shops  for  the  sale  of 
vegetable  food,  and  forty  thousand  tributary  Jews." 

So  fell  the  second  great  city  of  Christendom — the 
fate  of  Jerusalem  had  fallen  on  Alexandria,  the  city  of 
Athanasius,  and  Arius,  and  Cyril;  the  city  that  had 
imposed  Trinitarian  ideas  and  Mariolatry  on  the  Church. 
In  his  palace  at  Constantinople  Heraclius  received  the 
fatal  tidings.  He  was  overwhelmed  with  grief.  It 
seemed  as  if  his  reign  was  to  be  disgraced  by  the  down- 
fall of  Christianity.  He  lived  scarcely  a  month  after 
the  loss  of  the  town. 

But  if  Alexandria  had  been  essential  to  Constanti- 
nople in  the  supply  of  orthodox  faith,  she  was  also  es- 
sential in  the  supply  of  daily  food.  Egypt  was  the 
granary  of  the  Byzantines.  For  this  reason  two  at- 
tempts were  made  by  powerful  fleets  and  armies  for  the 
recovery  of  the  place,  and  twice  had  Amrou  to  renew 
his  conquest.  He  saw  with  what  facility  these  attacks 
could  be  made,  the  place  being  open  to  the  sea;  he  saw 
that  there  was  but  one  and  that  a  fatal  remedy.  "  By 
the  living  God,  if  this  thing  be  repeated  a  third  time, 
I  will  make  Alexandria  as  open  to  anybody  as  is  the 
house  of  a  prostitute! "  He  was  better  than  his  word, 
for  he  forthwith  dismantled  its  fortifications,  and  made 
it  an  untenable  place. 

It  was  not  the  intention  of  the  khalifs  to  limit  their 


FALL  OF  CARTHAGE.  95 

conquest  to  Egypt.  Othman  contemplated  the  annexa- 
tion of  the  entire  North-African  coast.  His  general, 
Abdallah,  set  out  from  Memphis  with  forty  thousand 
men,  passed  through  the  desert  of  Barca,  and  besieged 
Tripoli.  But,  the  plague  breaking  out  in  his  army,  he 
was  compelled  to  retreat  to  Egypt. 

All  attempts  were  now  suspended  for  more  than 
twenty  years.  Then  Akbah  forced  his  way  from  the 
Nile  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  In  front  of  the  Canary 
Islands  he  rode  his  horse  into  the  sea,  exclaiming: 
"  Great  God!  if  my  course  were  not  stopped  by  this 
sea,  I  would  still  go  on  to  the  unknown  kingdoms  of 
the  West,  preaching  the  unity  of  thy  holy  name,  and 
putting  to  the  sword  the  rebellious  nations  who  worship 
any  other  gods  than  thee." 

These  Saracen  expeditions  had  been  through  the 
interior  of  the  country,  for  the  Byzantine  emperors, 
controlling  for  the  time  the  Mediterranean,  had  retained 
possession  of  the  cities  on  the  coast.  The  Khalif 
Abdalmalek  at  length  resolved  on  the  reduction  of 
Carthage,  the  most  important  of  those  cities,  and  in- 
deed the  capital  of  North  Africa.  His  general,  Hassan, 
carried  it  by  escalade;  but  reinforcements  from  Con- 
stantinople, aided  by  some  Sicilian  and  Gothic  troops, 
compelled  him  to  retreat.  The  relief  was,  however, 
only  temporary.  Hassan,  in  the  course  of  a  few  months, 
renewed  his  attack.  It  proved  successful,  and  he  de- 
livered Carthage  to  the  flames. 

Jerusalem,  Alexandria,  Carthage,  three  out  of  the 
five  great  Christian  capitals,  were  lost.  The  fall  of 
Constantinople  was  only  a  question  of  time.  After  its 
fall,  Rome  alone  remained. 

In  the  development  of  Christianity,  Carthage  had 
played  no  insignificant  part.  It  had  given  to  Europe 


96  CONQUEST  OF  SPAIN. 

its  Latin  form  of  faith,  and  some  of  its  greatest  theo- 
logians. It  was  the  home  of  St.  Augustine. 

Never  in  the  history  of  the  world  had  there  been  so 
rapid  and  extensive  a  propagation  of  any  religion  as  Mo- 
hammedanism. It  was  now  dominating  from  the  Altai 
Mountains  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  from  the  centre  of 
Asia  to  the  western  verge  of  Africa. 

The  Khalif  Alwalid  next  authorized  the  invasion  of 
Europe,  the  conquest  of  Andalusia,  or  the  Region  of  the 
Evening.  Musa,  his  general,  found,  as  had  so  often  been 
the  case  elsewhere,  two  effective  allies,  sectarianism  and 
treason — the  Archbishop  of  Toledo  and  Count  Julian 
the  Gothic  general.  Under  their  lead,  in  the  very  crisis 
of  the  battle  of  Xeres,  a  large  portion  of  the  army  went 
over  to  the  invaders;  the  Spanish  king  was  compelled 
to  flee  from  the  field,  and  in  the  pursuit  he  was  drowned 
in  the  waters  of  the  Guadalquivir. 

With  great  rapidity  Tarik,  the  lieutenant  of  Musa, 
pushed  forward  from  the  battle-field  to  Toledo,  and 
thence  northward.  On  the  arrival  of  Musa  the  reduc- 
tion of  the  Spanish  peninsula  was  completed,  and  the 
wreck  of  the  Gothic  army  driven  beyond  the  Pyrenees 
into  France.  Considering  the  conquest  of  Spain  as  only 
the  first  step  in  his  victories,  he  announced  his  intention 
of  forcing  his  way  into  Italy,  and  preaching  the  unity 
of  God  in  the  Vatican.  Thence  he  would  march  to 
Constantinople,  and,  having  put  an  end  to  the  Roman 
Empire  and  Christianity,  would  pass  into  Asia  and  lay 
his  victorious  sword  on  the  footstool  of  the  khalif  at 
Damascus. 

But  this  was  not  to  be.  Musa,  envious  of  his  lieu- 
tenant, Tarik,  had  treated  him  with  great  indignity. 
The  friends  of  Tarik  at  the  court  of  the  khalif  found 
means  of  retaliation.  An  envoy  from  Damascus  ar- 


INVASION  OF  FRANCE.  97 

rested  Musa  in  his  camp;  he  was  carried  before  his 
sovereign,  disgraced  by  a  public  whipping,  and  died  of 
a  broken  heart. 

Under  other  leaders,  however,  the  Saracen  conquest 
of  France  was  attempted.  In  a  preliminary  campaign 
the  country  from  the  mouth  of  the  Garonne  to  that  of 
the  Loire  was  secured.  Then  Abderahman,  the  Saracen 
commander,  dividing  his  forces  into  two  columns,  with 
one  on  the  east  passed  the  Ehone,  and  laid  siege  to 
Aries.  A  Christian  army,  attempting  the  relief  of  the 
place,  was  defeated  with  heavy  loss.  His  western  col- 
umn, equally  successful,  passed  the  Dordogne,  defeated 
another  Christian  army,  inflicting  on  it  such  dreadful 
loss  that,  according  to  its  own  fugitives,  "  God  alone 
could  number  the  slain."  All  Central  France  was  now 
overrun;  the  banks  of  the  Loire  were  reached;  the 
churches  and  monasteries  were  despoiled  of  their  treas- 
ures; and  the  tutelar  saints,  who  had  worked  so  many 
miracles  when  there  was  no  necessity,  were  found  to 
want  the  requisite  power  when  it  was  so  greatly  needed. 

The  progress  of  the  invaders  was  at  length  stopped 
by  Charles  Martel  (A.  D.  732).  Between  Tours  and 
Poictiers,  a  great  battle,  which  lasted  seven  days,  was 
fought.  Abderahman  was  killed,  the  Saracens  retreated, 
ed,  and  soon  afterward  were  compelled  to  recross  the 
Pyrenees. 

The  banks  of  the  Loire,  therefore,  mark  the  bound- 
ary of  the  Mohammedan  advance  in  Western  Europe. 
Gibbon,  in  his  narrative  of  these  great  events,  makes 
this  remark:  "A  victorious  line  of  march  had  been 
prolonged  above  a  thousand  miles  from  the  rock  of 
Gibraltar  to  the  banks  of  the  Loire — a  repetition  of  an 
equal  space  would  have  carried  the  Saracens  to  the  con- 
fines of  Poland  and  the  Highlands  of  Scotland." 


OS  INSULT  TO  ROMK. 

It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  add  to  this  sketch  of 
the  military  diffusion  of  Mohammedanism,  the  opera- 
tions of  the  Saracens  on  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  their 
conquest  of  Crete  and  Sicily,  their  insult  to  Rome.  It 
will  be  found,  however,  that  their  presence  in  Sicily 
and  the  south  of  Italy  exerted  a  marked  influence  on 
the  intellectual  development  of  Europe. 

Their  insult  to  Rome!  What  could  be  more  hu- 
miliating than  the  circumstances  under  which  it  took 
place  (A.  D.  846)?  An  insignificant  Saracen  expedition 
entered  the  Tiber  and  appeared  before  the  walls  of  the 
city.  Too  weak  to  force  an  entrance,  it  insulted  and 
plundered  the  precincts,  sacrilegiously  violating  the 
tombs  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul.  Had  the  city  itself 
been  sacked,  the  moral  effect  could  not  have  been 
greater.  From  the  church  of  St.  Peter  its  altar  of  silver 
was  torn  away  and  sent  to  Africa — St.  Peter's  altar,  the 
very  emblem  of  Roman  Christianity! 

Constantinople  had  already  been  besieged  by  the 
Saracens  more  than  once;  its  fall  was  predestined,  and 
only  postponed.  Rome  had  received  the  direst  insult, 
the  greatest  loss  that  could  be  inflicted  upon  it;  the  ven- 
erable churches  of  Asia  Minor  had  passed  out  of  exist- 
ence; no  Christian  could  set  his  foot  in  Jerusalem  with- 
out permission;  the  Mosque  of  Omar  stood  on  the  site  of 
the  Temple  of  Solomon.  Among  the  ruins  of  Alexan- 
dria the  Mosque  of  Mercy  marked  the  spot  where  a 
Saracen  general,  satiated  with  massacre,  had,  in  con- 
temptuous compassion,  spared  the  fugitive  relics  of  the 
enemies  of  Mohammed;  nothing  remained  of  Carthage 
but  her  blackened  ruins.  The  most  powerful  religious 
empire  that  the  world  had  ever  seen  had  suddenly  come 
into  existence.  It  stretched  from  the  Atlantic  Ocean 
to  the  Chinese  Wall,  from  the  shores  of  the  Caspian  to 


DISSENSIONS  OF  THE  ARABS.  99 

those  of  the  Indian  Ocean,  and  yet,  in  one  sense,  it  had 
not  reached  its  culmination.  The  day  was  to  come 
when  it  was  to  expel  the  successors  of  the  Caesars  from 
their  capital,  and  hold  the  peninsula  of  Greece  in  sub- 
jection, to  dispute  with  Christianity  the  empire  of  Eu- 
rope in  the  very  centre  of  that  continent,  and  in  Africa 
to  extend  its  dogmas  and  faith  across  burning  deserts 
and  through  pestilential  forests  from  the  Mediterranean 
to  regions  southward  far  beyond  the  equinoctial  line. 

But,  though  Mohammedanism  had  not  reached  its 
culmination,  the  dominion  of  the  khalifs  had.  Not  the 
sword  of  Charles  Martel,  but  the  internal  dissension  of 
the  vast  Arabian  Empire,  was  the  salvation  of  Europe. 
Though  the  Ommiade  khalifs  were  popular  in  Syria, 
elsewhere  they  were  looked  upon  as  intruders  or  usurp- 
ers; the  kindred  of  the  apostle  was  considered  to  be  the 
rightful  representative  of  his  faith.  Three  parties,  dis- 
tinguished by  their  colors,  tore  the  khalifate  asunder 
with  their  disputes,  and  disgraced  it  by  their  atroci- 
ties. The  color  of  the  Ommiades  was  white,  that  of  the 
Fatimites  green,  that  of  the  Abassides  black;  the  last 
represented  the  party  of  Abbas,  the  uncle  of  Mohammed. 
The  result  of  these  discords  was  a  tripartite  division  of 
the  Mohammedan  Empire  in  the  tenth  century  into  the 
khalifates  of  Bagdad,  of  Cairoan,  and  of  Cordova.  Uni- 
ty in  Mohammedan  political  action  was  at  an  end,  and 
Christendom  found  its  safeguard,  not  in  supernatural 
help,  but  in  the  quarrels  of  the  rival  potentates.  To 
internal  animosities  foreign  pressures  were  eventually 
added;  and  Arabism,  which  had  done  so  much  for  the 
intellectual  advancement  of  the  world,  came  to  an  end 
when  the  Turks  and  the  Berbers  attained  to  power. 

The  Saracens  had  become  totally  regardless  of  Euro- 
pean opposition — they  were  wholly  taken  up  with  their 


100  POLITICAL  EFFECT  OF  POLYGAMY. 

domestic  quarrels.  Ockley  says  with  truth,  in  his  his- 
tory: "  The  Saracens  had  scarce  a  deputy  lieutenant  or 
general  that  would  not  have  thought  it  the  greatest 
affront,  and  such  as  ought  to  stigmatize  him  with  indel- 
ible disgrace,  if  he  should  have  suffered  himself  to  have 
been  insulted  by  the  united  forces  of  all  Europe.  And 
if  any  one  asks  why  the  Greeks  did  not  exert  them- 
selves more,  in  order  to  the  extirpation  of  these  inso- 
lent invaders,  it  is  a  sufficient  answer  to  any  person  that 
is  acquainted  with  the  characters  of  those  men  to  say 
that  Amrou  kept  his  residence  at  Alexandria,  and  Moa- 
wyah  at  Damascus." 

As  to  their  contempt,  this  instance  may  suffice:  Ni- 
cephorus,  the  Roman  emperor,  had  sent  to  the  Khalif 
Haroun-al-llaschid  a  threatening  letter,  and  this  was  the 
reply:  "  In  the  name  of  the  most  merciful  God,  Haroun- 
al-Raschid,  commander  of  the  faithful,  to  Nicephorus, 
the  Roman  dog!  I  have  read  thy  letter,  0  thou  son 
of  an  unbelieving  mother.  Thou  shalt  not  hear,  thou 
shalt  behold  my  reply! "  It  was  written  in  letters  of 
blood  and  fire  on  the  plains  of  Phrygia. 

A  nation  may  recover  the  confiscation  of  its  prov- 
inces, the  confiscation  of  its  wealth;  it  may  survive  the 
imposition  of  enormous  war-fines;  but  it  never  can  re- 
cover from  that  most  frightful  of  all  war-acts,  the  con- 
fiscation of  its  women.  When  Abou  Obeidah  sent  to 
Omar  news  of  his  capture  of  Antioch,  Omar  gently  up- 
braided him  that  he  had  not  let  the  troops  have  the 
women.  "  If  they  want  to  marry  in  Syria,  let  them; 
and  let  them  have  as  many  female  slaves  as  they  have 
occasion  for."  It  was  the  institution  of  polygamy,  based 
upon  the  confiscation  of  the  women  in  the  vanquished 
countries,  that  secured  forever  the  Mohammedan  rule. 
The  children  of  these  unions  gloried  in  their  descent 


MOHAMMEDANISM.  101 

from  their  conquering  fathers.  No  better  'proof  can  be 
given  of  the  efficacy  of  this  policy  than  that  which  is 
furnished  by  North  Africa.  The  irresistible  effect  of 
polygamy  in  consolidating  the  new  order  of  things  was 
very  striking.  In  little  more  than  a  single  generation, 
the  khalif  was  informed  by  his  officers  that  the  tjibute 
must  cease,  for  all  the  children  born  in  that  region  were 
Mohammedans,  and  all  spoke  Arabic. 

Mohammedanism,  as  left  by  its  founder,  was  an  an- 
thropomorphic religion.  Its  God  was  only  a  gigantic 
man,  its  heaven  a  mansion  of  carnal  pleasures.  From 
these  imperfect  ideas  its  more  intelligent  classes  very 
soon  freed  themselves,  substituting  for  them  others 
more  philosophical,  more  correct.  Eventually  they  at- 
tained to  an  accordance  with  those  that  have  been  pro- 
nounced in  our  own  times  by  the  Vatican  Council  as 
orthodox.  Thus  Al-Gazzali  says:  "  A  knowledge  of 
God  cannot  be  obtained  by  means  of  the  knowledge  a 
man  has  of  himself,  or  of  his  own  soul.  The  attributes 
of  God  cannot  be  determined  from  the  attributes  of 
man.  His  sovereignty  and  government  can  neither  be 
compared  nor  measured." 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE   RESTORATION   OF  SCIENCE   IN  THE  SOUTH. 

By  the  influence  of  the  Nestorians  and  Jews,  the  Arabians  are 
turned  to  the  cultivation  of  Science. —  They  modify  t/trir  ri>  //•.« 
CM  to  the  destiny  of  man,  and  obtain  true  conceptions  respect- 
ing the  structure  of  the  world. —  They  ascertain  the  size  of  the 
earth,  and  determine  its  shape. — Their  khalifs  collect  great 
libraries,  patronize  every  department  of  science  and  literature, 
establish  astronomical  observatories. — They  develop  the  mathe- 
matical sciences,  invent  algebra,  and  improve  geometry  and 
trigonometry. —  They  collect  and  translate  the  old  Greek  mathe- 
matical and  astronomical  works,  and  adopt  the  inductive 
method  of  Aristotle. — They  establish  many  colleges,  and,  with 
the  aid  of  the  Nestorians,  organize  a  public-school  system. — 
They  introduce  the  Arabic  numerals  and  arithmetic,  and 
catalogue  and  give  names  to  the  stars. — They  lay  the  founda- 
tion of  modern  astronomy,  chemistry,  and  physics,  and  intro- 
duce great  improvements  in  agriculture  and  manufactures. 

"  IN  the  course  of  my  long  life,"  said  the  Khalif  Ali, 
"  I  have  often  observed  that  men  are  more  like  the  times 
they  live  in  than  they  are  like  their  fathers."  This  pro- 
foundly philosophical  remark  of  the  son-in-law  of  Mo- 
hammed is  strictly  true;  for,  though  the  personal,  the 
bodily  lineaments  of  a  man  may  indicate  his  parentage, 
the  constitution  of  his  mind,  and  therefore  the  direction 
of  his  thoughts,  is  determined  by  the  environment  in 
which  he  lives. 

When  Amrou,  the  lieutenant  of  the  Khalif  Omar, 
conquered  Egypt,  and  annexed  it  to  the  Saracenic  Em- 

102 


THE  ALEXANDRIAN  LIBRARY  BURNT.         1Q3 

pire,  he  found  in  Alexandria  a  Greek  grammarian,  John 
surnamed  Philoponus,  or  the  Labor-lover.  Presuming 
on  the  friendship  which  had  arisen  between  them,  the 
Greek  solicited  as  a  gift  the  remnant  of  the  great  libra- 
ry— a  remnant  which  war  and  time  and  bigotry  had 
spared.  Amrout,  therefore,  sent  to  the  khalif  to  ascer- 
tain his  pleasure.  "  if,"  replied  the  khalif,  "  the  books 
agree  with  the  Koran,  the  Word  of  God,  they  are  use- 
less, and  need  not  be  preserved;  if  they  disagree  with  it, 
they  are  pernicious.  Let  them  be  destroyed."  Accord- 
ingly, they  were  distributed  among  the  baths  of  Alex- 
andria, and  it  is  said  that  six  months  were  barely  suffi- 
cient to  consume  them. 

Although  the  fact  has  been  denied,  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that  Omar  gave  this  order.  The  khalif  was  an 
illiterate  man;  his  environment  was  an  environment  of 
fanaticism  and  ignorance.  Omar's  act  was  an  illustra- 
tion of  Ali's  remark. 

But  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  books  which 
John  the  Labor-lover  coveted  were  those  which  con- 
stituted the  great  library  of  the  Ptolemies,  and  that  of 
Eumenes,  King  of  Pergamus.  Nearly  a  thousand  years 
had  elapsed  since  Philadelphia  began  his  collection. 
Julius  Cfesar  had  burnt  more  than  half;  the  Patriarchs 
of  Alexandria  had  not  only  permitted  but  superintended 
the  dispersion  of  almost  all  the  rest.  Orosius  expressly 
states  that  he  saw  the  empty  cases  or  shelves  of  the  li- 
brary twenty  years  after  Theophilus,  the  uncle  of  St. 
Cyril,  had  procured  from  the  Emperor  Theodosius  a  re- 
script for  its  destruction.  Even  had  this  once  noble  col- 
lection never  endured  such  acts  of  violence,  the  mere 
wear  and  tear,  and  perhaps,  I  may  add,  the  pilfering  of 
a  thousand  years,  would  have  diminished  it  sadly. 
Though  John,  as  the  surname  he  received  indicates, 


104        THE  ALEXANDRIAN   LIBRARY  BURNT. 

might  rejoice  in  a  superfluity  of  occupation,  we  may  be 
certain  that  the  care  of  a  library  of  half  a  million  books 
would  transcend  even  his  well-tried  powers;  and  the  cost 
of  preserving  and  supporting  it,  that  had  demanded  the 
ample  resources  of  the  Ptolemies  and  the  Caesars,  was  be- 
yond the  means  of  a  grammarian.  Nor  is  the  time  re- 
quired for  its  combustion  or  destruction  any  indication 
of  the  extent  of  the  collection.  Of  all  articles  of  fuel, 
parchment  is,  perhaps,  the  most  wretched.  Paper  and 
papyrus  do  excellently  well  as  kindling-materials,  but  we 
may  be  sure  that  the  bath-men  of  Alexandria  did  not 
resort  to  parchment  so  long  as  they  could  find  any  thing 
else,  and  of  parchment  a  very  large  portion  of  these 
books  was  composed. 

There  can,  then,  be  no  more  doubt  that  Omar  did 
order  the  destruction  of  this  library,  under  an  impres* 
sion  of  its  uselessness  or  its  irreligious  tendency,  than 
that  the  Crusaders  burnt  the  library  of  Tripoli,  fanci- 
fully said  to  have  consisted  of  three  million  volumes. 
The  first  apartment  entered  being  found  to  contain 
nothing  but  the  Koran,  all  the  other  books  were  sup- 
posed to  be  the  works  of  the  Arabian  impostor,  and 
were  consequently  committed  to  the  flames.  In  both 
cases  the  story  contains  some  truth  and  much  exaggera- 
tion. Bigotry,  however,  has  often  distinguished  itself 
by  such  exploits.  The  Spaniards  burnt  in  Mexico  vast 
piles  of  American  picture-writings,  an  irretrievable  loss; 
and  Cardinal  Ximenes  delivered  to  the  flames,  in  the 
squares  of  Granada,  eighty  thousand  Arabic  manu- 
scripts, many  of  them  translations  of  classical  au- 
thors. 

We  have  seen  how  engineering  talent,  stimulated  by 
Alexander's  Persian  campaign,  led  to  a  wonderful  de- 
velopment of  pure  science  under  the  Ptolemies;  a  simi- 


INFLUENCE  OF  THE  NESTOEIANS  AND  JEWS/1Q5 

lar  effect  may  be  noted  as  the  result  of  the  Saracenic 
military  operations. 

The  friendship  contracted  by  Amrou,  the  conqueror 
of  Egypt,  with  John  the  Grammarian,  indicates  how 
much  the  Arabian  mind  was  predisposed  to  liberal 
ideas.  Its  step  from  the  idolatry  of  the  Caaba  to  the 
monotheism  of  Mohammed  prepared  it  to  expatiate  in 
the  wide  and  pleasing  fields  of  literature  and  philosophy. 
There  were  two  influences  to  which  it  was  continually 
exposed.  They  conspired  in  determining  its  path. 
These  were — 1.  That  of  the  Nestorians  in  Syria;  2.  That 
of  the  Jews  in  Egypt. 

In  the  last  chapter  I  have  briefly  related  the  per- 
secution of  Nestor  and  his  disciples.  They  bore  testi- 
mony to  the  oneness  of  God,  through  many  sufferings 
and  martyrdoms.  They  utterly  repudiated  an  Olympus 
filled  with  gods  and  goddesses.  "  Away  from  us  a 
queen  of  heaven! " 

Such  being  their  special  views,  the  Nestorians  found 
no  difficulty  in  affiliating  with  their  Saracen  conquerors, 
by  whom  they  were  treated  not  only  with  the  highest 
respect,  but  intrusted  with  some  of  the  most  important 
offices  of  the  state.  Mohammed,  in  the  strongest  man- 
ner, prohibited  his  followers  from  committing  any  in- 
juries against  them.  Jesuiabbas,  their  pontiff,  con- 
cluded treaties  both  with  the  Prophet  and  with  Omar, 
and  subsequently  the  Khalif  Haroun-al-Raschid  placed 
all  his  public  schools  under  the  superintendence  of  John 
Masue,  a  Nestorian. 

To  the  influence  of  the  Nestorians  that  of  the  Jews 
was  added.  When  Christianity  displayed  a  tendency  to 
unite  itself  with  paganism,  the  conversion  of  the  Jews 
was  arrested;  it  totally  ceased  when  Trinitarian  ideas 
were  introduced.  The  cities  of  Syria  and  Egypt  were 


106  FATALISM  OP  THE  ARABIANS. 

full  of  Jews.  In  Alexandria  alone,  at  the  time  of  its 
capture  by  Ararou,  there  were  forty  thousand  who  paid 
tribute.  Centuries  of  misfortune  and  persecution  had 
served  only  to  confirm  them  in  their  monotheism,  and 
to  strengthen  that  implacable  hatred  of  idolatry  which 
they  had  cherished  ever  since  the  Babylonian  captivity. 
Associated  with  the  Nestorians,  they  translated  into 
Syriac  many  Greek  and  Latin  philosophical  works,  which 
were  retranslated  into  Arabic.  While  the  Nestorian 
was  occupied  with  the  education  of  the  children  of  the 
great  Mohammedan  families,  the  Jew  found  his  way 
into  them  in  the  character  of  a  physician. 

Under  these  influences  the  ferocious  fanaticism  of 
the  Saracens  abated,  their  manners  were  polished,  their 
thoughts  elevated.  They  overran  the  realms  of  Philos- 
ophy and  Science  as  quickly  as  they  had  overrun  the 
provinces  of  the  Roman  Empire.  They  abandoned  the 
fallacies  of  vulgar  Mohammedanism,  accepting  in  their 
stead  scientific  truth. 

In  a  world  devoted  to  idolatry,  the  sword  of  the 
Saracen  had  vindicated  the  majesty  of  God.  The  doc- 
trine of  fatalism,  inculcated  by  the  Koran,  had  power- 
fully contributed  to  that  result.  "  No  man  can  antici- 
pate or  postpone  his  predetermined  end.  Death  will 
overtake  us  even  in  lofty  towers.  From  the  beginning 
God  hath  settled  the  place  in  which  each  man  shall  die." 
In  his  figurative  language  the  Arab  said:  "No  man  can 
by  flight  escape  his  fate.  The  Destinies  ride  their 
horses  by  night.  .  .  .  Whether  asleep  in  bed  or  in  the 
storm  of  battle,  the  angel  of  death  will  find  thee."  "  I 
am  convinced,"  said  Ali,  to  whose  wisdom  we  have  al- 
ready referred — "  I  am  convinced  that  the  affairs  of  men 
go  by  divine  decree,  and  not  by  our  administration." 
The  Mussulmen  are  those  who  submissively  resign  them- 


FATALISM  OF  THE  ARABIANS.  107 

selves  to  the  will  of  God.  They  reconciled  fate  and 
free-will  by  saying,  "  The  outline  is  given  us,  we  color 
the  picture  of  life  as  we  will."  They  said  that,  if  we 
would  overcome  the  laws  of  Nature,  we  must  not  resist, 
we  must  balance  them  against  each  other. 

This  dark  doctrine  prepared  its  devotees  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  great  things — things  such  as  the  Sara- 
cens did  accomplish.  It  converted  despair  into  resigna- 
tion, and  taught  men  to  disdain  hope.  There  was  a 
proverb  among  them  that  "  Despair  is  a  freeman,  Hope 
is  a  slave." 

But  many  of  the  incidents  of  war  showed  plainly 
that  medicines  may  assuage  pain,  that  skill  may  close 
wounds,  that  those  who  are  incontestably  dying  may  be 
snatched  from  the  grave.  The  Jewish  physician  became 
a  living,  an  accepted  protest  against  the  fatalism  of  the 
Koran.  By  degrees  the  sternness  of  predestination  was 
mitigated,  and  it  was  admitted  that  in  individual  life 
there  is  an  effect  due  to  free-will;  that  by  his  voluntary 
acts  man  may  within  certain  limits  determine  his  own 
course.  But,  so  far  as  nations  are  concerned,  since  they 
can  yield  no  personal  accountability  to  God,  they  are 
placed  under  the  control  of  immutable  law. 

In  this  respect  the  contrast  between  the  Christian 
and  the  Mohammedan  nations  was  very  striking:  The 
Christian  was  convinced  of  incessant  providential  inter- 
ventions; he  believed  that  there  was  no  such  thing  as 
law  in  the  government  of  the  world.  By  prayers  and 
entreaties  he  might  prevail  with  God  to  change  the  cur- 
rent of  affairs,  or,  if  that  failed,  he  might  succeed  with 
Christ,  or  perhaps  Avith  the  Virgin  Mary,  or  through 
the  intercession  of  the  saints,  or  by  the  influence  of 
their  relics  or  bones.  If  his  own  supplications  were  un- 
availing, he  might  obtain  his  desire  through  the  inter- 


108  FATALISM  OP  THE  ARABIANS. 

vention  of  his  priest,  or  through  that  of  the  holy  men 
of  the  Church,  and  especially  if  oblations  or  gifts  of 
money  were  added.  Christendom  believed  that  she 
could  change  the  course  of  affairs  by  influencing  the  con- 
duct of  superior  beings.  Islam  rested  in  a  pious  resig- 
nation to  the  unchangeable  will  of  God.  The  prayer  of 
the  Christian  was  mainly  an  earnest  intercession  for 
benefits  hoped  for,  that  of  the  Saracen  a  devout  expres- 
sion of  gratitude  for  the  past.  Both  substituted  prayer 
for  the  ecstatic  meditation  of  India.  To  the  Christian 
the  progress  of  the  world  was  an  exhibition  of  discon- 
nected impulses,  of  sudden  surprises.  To  the  Moham- 
medan that  progress  presented  a  very  different  aspect. 
Every  corporeal  motion  was  due  to  some  preceding  mo- 
tion; every  thought  to  some  preceding  thought;  every 
historical  event  was  the  offspring  of  some  preceding 
event;  every  human  action  was  the  result  of  some  fore- 
gone and  accomplished  action.  In  the  long  annals  of 
our  race,  nothing  has  ever  been  abruptly  introduced. 
There  has  been  an  orderly,  an  inevitable  sequence  from 
event  to  event.  There  is  an  iron  chain  of  destiny,  of 
which  the  links  are  facts;  each  stands  in  its  preordained 
place — not  one  has  ever  been  disturbed,  not  one  has 
ever  been  removed.  Every  man  came  into  the  world 
without  his  own  knowledge,  he  is  to  depart  from  it  per- 
haps against  his  own  wishes.  Then  let  him  calmly  fold 
his  hands,  and  expect  the  issues  of  fate. 

Coincidently  with  this  change  of  opinion  as  to  the 
government  of  individual  life,  there  came  a  change  as 
respects  the  mechanical  construction  of  the  world.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Koran,  the  earth  is  a  square  plane,  edged 
with  vast  mountains,  which  serve  the  double  purpose 
of  balancing  it  in  its  seat,  and  of  sustaining  the  dome 
of  the  sky.  Our  devout  admiration  of  the  power  and 


THEY  MEASURE  THE  EARTH.       109 

wisdom  of  God  should  be  excited  by  the  spectacle  of 
this  vast  crystalline  brittle  expanse,  which  has  been  safe- 
ly set  in  its  position  without  so  much  as  a  crack  or  any 
other  injury.  Above  the  sky,  and  resting  on  it,  is 
heaven,  built  in  seven  stories,  the  uppermost  being  the 
habitation  of  God,  who,  under  the  form  of  a  gigantic 
man,  sits  on  a  throne,  having  on  either  side  winged 
bulls,  like  those  in  the  palaces  of  old  Assyrian  kings. 

These  ideas,  which  indeed  are  not  peculiar  to  Mo- 
hammedanism, but  are  entertained  by  all  men  in  a 
certain  stage  of  their  intellectual  development  as  re- 
ligious revelations,  were  very  quickly  exchanged  by 
the  more  advanced  Mohammedans  for  others  scientifi- 
cally correct.  Yet,  as  has  been  the  case  in  Christian 
countries,  the  advance  was  not  made  without  resistance 
on  the  part  of  the  defenders  of  revealed  truth.  Thus 
when  Al-Mamun,  having  become  acquainted  with  the 
globular  form  of  the  earth,  gave  orders  to  his  mathema- 
ticians and  astronomers  to  measure  a  degree  of  a  great 
circle  upon  it,  Takyuddin,  one  of  the  most  celebrated 
doctors  of  divinity  of  that  time,  denounced  the  wicked 
khalif,  declaring  that  God  would  assuredly  punish  him 
for  presumptuously  interrupting  the  devotions  of  the 
faithful  by  encouraging  and  diffusing  a  false  and  atheis- 
tical philosophy  among  them.  Al-Mamun,  however,  per- 
sisted. On  the  shores  of  the  Eed  Sea,  in  the  plains  of 
Shinar,  by  the  aid  of  an  astrolabe,  the  elevation  of  the 
pole  above  the  horizon  was  determined  at  two  stations 
on  the  same  meridian,  exactly  one  degree  apart.  The 
distance  between  the  two  stations  was  then  measured, 
and  found  to  be  two  hundred  thousand  Hashemite 
cubits;  this  gave  for  the  entire  circumference  of  the 
earth  about  twenty-four  thousand  of  our  miles,  a  deter- 
mination not  far  from  the  truth.  But,  since  the  spheri- 


HO  T11KIK   PASSION  FOR  SCIENCE. 

cal  form  could  not  be  positively  asserted  from  one  such 
measurement,  the  khalif  caused  another  to  be  made  near 
fu fa  in  Mesopotamia.  His  astronomers  divided  them- 
selves into  two  parties,  and,  starting  from  a  given  point, 
each  party  measured  an  arc  of  one  degree,  the  one 
northward,  the  other  southward.  Their  result  is  given 
in  cubits.  If  the  cubit  employed  was  that  known  as  the 
royal  cubit,  the  length  of  a  degree  was  ascertained  with- 
in one-third  of  a  mile  of  its  true  value.  From  these 
measures  the  khalif  concluded  that  the  globular  form 
was  established. 

It  is  remarkable  how  quickly  the  ferocious  fanati- 
cism of  the  Saracens  was  transformed  into  a  passion  for 
intellectual  pursuits.  At  first  the  Koran  was  an  obstacle 
to  literature  and  science.  Mohammed  had  extolled  it  as 
the  grandest  of  all  compositions,  and  had  adduced  its  un- 
approachable excellence  as  a  proof  of  his  divine  mission. 
But,  in  little  more  than  twenty  years  after  his  death,  the 
experience  that  had  been  acquired  in  Syria,  Persia,  Asia 
Minor,  Egypt,  had  produced  a  striking  effect,  and  Ali, 
the  khalif  reigning  at  that  time,  avowedly  encouraged 
all  kinds  of  literary  pursuits.  Moawyah,  the  founder 
of  the  Ommiade  dynasty,  who  followed  in  661,  revolu- 
tionized the  government.  It  had  been  elective,  he  made 
it  hereditary.  He  removed  its  seat  from  Medina  to  a 
more  central  position  at  Damascus,  and  entered  on  a 
career  of  luxury  and  magnificence.  He  broke  the  bonds 
of  a  stern  fanaticism,  and  put  himself  forth  as  a  culti- 
vator and  patron  of  letters.  Thirty  years  had  wrought 
a  wonderful  change.  A  Persian  satrap  who  had  occa- 
sion to  pay  homage  to  Omar,  the  second  khalif,  found 
him  asleep  among  the  beggars  on  the  steps  of  the 
Mosque  of  Medina;  but  foreign  envoys  who  had  occasion 
to  seek  M  on  \vyah,  the  sixth  khalif,  were  presented  to  him 


THEIR  LITERATURE.  \\\ 

in  a  magnificent  palace,  decorated  with  exquisite  ara- 
besques, and  adorned  with  flower-gardens  and  fountains. 

In  less  than  a  century  after  the  death  of  Mohammed, 
translations  of  the  chief  Greek  philosophical  authors  had 
been  made  into  Arabic;  poems  such  as  the  "  Iliad  *'  and 
the  "  Odyssey,"  being  considered  to  have  an  irreligious 
tendency  from  their  mythological  allusions,  were  ren- 
dered into  Syriac,  to  gratify  the  curiosity  of  the  learned. 
Almansor,  during  his  khalifate  (A.  D.  753-775),  trans- 
ferred the  seat  of  government  to  Bagdad,  which  he  con- 
verted into  a  splendid  metropolis;  he  gave  much  of  his 
time  to  the  study  and  promotion  of  astronomy,  and 
established  schools  of  medicine  and  law.  His  grand- 
son, Haroun-al-Easchid  (A.  D.  786),  followed  his  exam- 
ple, and  ordered  that  to  every  mosque  in  his  dominions  a 
school  should  be  attached.  But  the  Augustan  age  of 
Asiatic  learning  was  during  the  khalifate  of  A*l-Mamun 
(A.  D.  813-832).  He  made  Bagdad  the  centre  of  science, 
collected  great  libraries,  and  surrounded  himself  with 
learned  men. 

The  elevated  taste  thus  cultivated  continued  after 
the  division  of  the  Saracen  Empire  by  internal  dissen- 
sions into  three  parts.  The  Abasside  dynasty  in  Asia, 
the  Fatimite  in  Egypt,  and  the  Ommiade  in  Spain,  be- 
came rivals  not  merely  in  politics,  but  also  in  letters 
and  science. 

In  letters  the  Saracens  embraced  every  topic  that 
can  amuse  or  edify  the  mind.  In  later  times,  it  was 
their  boast  that  they  had  produced  more  poets  than  all 
other  nations  combined.  In  science  their  great  merit 
consists  in  this,  that  they  cultivated  it  after  the  manner 
of  the  Alexandrian  Greeks,  not  after  the  manner  of  the 
European  Greeks.  They  perceived  that  it  can  never 
be  advanced  by  mere  speculation;  its  only  sure  progress 


112  THEY  ORIGINATE  CHEMISTRY. 

is  by  the  practical  interrogation  of  Nature.  The  essen- 
tial characteristics  of  their  method  are  experiment  and 
observation.  Geometry  and  the  mathematical  sciences 
they  looked  upon  as  instruments  of  reasoning.  In  their 
numerous  writings  on  mechanics,  hydrostatics,  optics, 
it  is  interesting  to  remark  that  the  solution  of  a  problem 
is  always  obtained  by  performing  an  experiment,  or  by 
an  instrumental  observation.  It  was  this  that  made 
them  the  originators  of  chemistry,  that  led  them  to  the 
invention  of  all  kinds  of  apparatus  for  distillation,  sub- 
limation, fusion,  filtration, etc.;  that  in  astronomy  caused 
them  to  appeal  to  divided  instruments,  as  quadrants  and 
astrolabes;  in  chemistry,  to  employ  the  balance,  the 
theory  of  which  they  were  perfectly  familiar  with;  to 
construct  tables  of  specific  gravities  and  astronomical 
tables,  as  those  of  Bagdad,  Spain,  Samarcand;  that  pro- 
duced their  great  improvements  in  geometry,  trigonom- 
etry, the  invention  of  algebra,  and  the  adoption  of  the 
Indian  numeration  in  arithmetic.  Such  were  the  results 
of  their  preference  of  the  inductive  method  of  Aristotle, 
their  declining  the  reveries  of  Plato. 

For  the  establishment  and  extension  of  the  public 
libraries,  books  were  sedulously  collected.  Thus  the 
Khalif  Al-Mamun  is  reported  to  have  brought  into 
Bagdad  hundreds  of  camel-loads  of  manuscripts.  In  a 
treaty  he  made  with  the  Greek  emperor,  Michael  III., 
he  stipulated  that  one  of  the  Constantinople  libraries 
should  be  given  up  to  him.  Among  the  treasures  he 
thus  acquired  was  the  treatise  of  Ptolemy  on  the  mathe- 
matical construction  of  the  heavens.  He  had  it  forth- 
with translated  into  Arabic,  under  the  title  of  "  Alma- 
gest." The  collections  thus  acquired  sometimes  became 
very  large;  thus  the  "Fatimite  Library  at  Cairo  con- 
tained one  hundred  thousand  volumes,  elegantly  tran- 


THEIR  GREAT  LIBRARIES.  H3 

scribed  and  bound.  Among  these,  there  were  six  thou- 
sand five  hundred  manuscripts  on  astronomy  and  medi- 
cine alone.  The  rules  of  this  library  permitted  the 
lending  out  of  books  to  students  resident  at  Cairo.  It 
also  contained  two  globes,  one  of  massive  silver  and  one 
of  brass;  the  latter  was  said  to  have  been  constructed  by 
Ptolemy,  the  former  cost  three  thousand  golden  crowns. 
The  great  library  of  the  Spanish  khalifs  eventually 
numbered  six  hundred  thousand  volumes;  its  catalogue 
alone  occupied  forty-four.  Besides  this,  there  were 
seventy  public  libraries  in  Andalusia.  The  collections 
in  the  possession  of  individuals  were  sometimes  very 
extensive.  A  private  doctor  refused  the  invitation  of  a 
Sultan  of  Bokhara  because  the  carriage  of  his  books 
would  have  required  four  hundred  camels. 

There  was  in  every  great  library  a  department  for 
the  copying  or  manufacture  of  translations.  Such  manu- 
factures were  also  often  an  affair  of  private  enterprise. 
Honian,  a  Nestorian  physician,  had  an  establishment  of 
the  kind  at  Bagdad  (A.  D.  850).  He  issued  versions  of 
Aristotle,  Plato,  Hippocrates,  Galen,  etc.  As  to  ori- 
ginal works,  it  was  the  custom  of  the  authorities  of  col- 
leges to  require  their  professors  to  prepare  treatises  on 
prescribed  topics.  Every  khalif  had  his  own  historian. 
Books  of  romances  and  tales,  such  as  "  The  Thousand 
and  One  Arabian  Nights'  Entertainments,"  bear  testi- 
mony to  the  creative  fancy  of  the  Saracens.  Besides 
these,  there  were  works  on  all  kinds  of  subjects — his- 
tory, jurisprudence,  politics,  philosophy,  biographies  not 
only  of  illustrious  men,  but  also  of  celebrated  horses 
and  camels.  These  were  issued  without  any  censorship 
or  restraint,  though  in  later  times  works  on  theology 
required  a  license  for  publication.  Books  of  reference 
abounded,  geographical,  statistical,  medical,  historical, 


THEIR  GREAT  LIBRARIES. 

dictionaries,  and  even  abridgments  or  condensations 
of  them,  as  the  "Encyclopedic  Dcitionary  of  all  the 
Sciences/'  by  Mohammed  Abu  Abdallah.  Much  pride 
was  taken  in  the  purity  and  whiteness  of  the  paper,  in 
the  skillful  intermixture  of  variously-colored  inks,  and 
in  the  illumination  of  titles  by  gilding  and  other  adorn- 
ments. 

The  Saracen  Empire  was  dotted  all  over  with  col- 
leges. They  were  established  in  Mongolia,  Tartary, 
Persia,  Mesopotamia,  Syria,  Egypt,  North  Africa, 
Morocco,  Fez,  Spain.  At  one  extremity  of  this  vast 
region,  which  far  exceeded  the  Roman  Empire  in  geo- 
graphical extent,  were  the  college  and  astronomical  ob- 
servatory of  Samarcand,  at  the  other  the  Giralda  in 
Spain.  Gibbon,  referring  to  this  patronage  of  learn- 
ing, says:  "  The  same  royal  prerogative  was  claimed  by 
the  independent  emirs  of  the  provinces,  and  their  emu- 
lation diffused  the  taste  and  the  rewards  of  science  from 
Samarcand  and  Bokhara  to  Fez  and  Cordova.  The 
vizier  of  a  sultan  consecrated  a  sum  of  two  hundred 
thousand  pieces  of  gold  to  the  foundation  of  a  college 
at  Bagdad,  which  he  endowed  with  an  annual  revenue 
of  fifteen  thousand  dinars.  The  fruits  of  instruction 
were  communicated,  perhaps,  at  different  times,  to  six 
thousand  disciples  of  every  degree,  from  the  son  of  the 
noble  to  that  of  the  mechanic;  a  sufficient  allowance  was 
provided  for  the  indigent  scholars,  and  the  merit  or 
industry  of  the  professors  was  repaid  with  adequate  sti- 
pends. In  every  city  the  productions  of  Arabic  litera- 
ture were  copied  and  collected,  by  the  curiosity  of  the 
studious  and  the  vanity  of  the  rich."  The  superintend- 
ence of  these  schools  was  committed  with,  noble  liberal- 
ity sometimes  to  Nestorians,  sometimes  to  Jews.  It 
mattered  not  in  what  country  a  man  was  born,  nor  what 


THE  ARABIAN  SCIENTIFIC  MOVEMENT.       H5 

were  his  religious  opinions;  his  attainment  in  learning 
was  the  only  thing  to  be  considered.  The  great  Khalif 
Al-Manmn  had  declared  that  "  they  are  the  elect  of 
God,  his  best  and  most  useful  servants,  whose  lives  are 
devoted  to  the  improvement  of  their  rational  faculties; 
that  the  teachers  of  wisdom  are  the  true  luminaries  and 
legislators  of  this  world,  which,  without  their  aid,  would 
again  sink  into  ignorance  and  barbarism." 

After  the  example  of  the  medical  college  of  Cairo, 
other  medical  colleges  required  their  students  to  pass  a 
rigid  examination.  The  candidate  then  received  au- 
thority to  enter  on  the  practice  of  his  profession.  The 
first  medical  college  established  in  Europe  was  that 
founded  by  the  Saracens  at  Salerno,  in  Italy.  The  first 
astronomical  observatory  was  that  erected  by  them  at 
Seville,  in  Spain. 

It  would  far  transcend  the  limits  of  this  book  to  give 
an  adequate  statement  of  the  results  of  this  imposing 
scientific  movement.  The  ancient  sciences  were  greatly 
extended — new  ones  were  brought  into  existence.  The 
Indian  method  of  arithmetic  was  introduced,  a  beautiful 
invention,  which  expresses  all  numbers  by  ten  charac- 
ters, giving  them  an  absolute  value,  and  a  value  by  posi- 
tion, and  furnishing  simple  rules  for  the  easy  perform- 
ance of  all  kinds  of  calculations.  Algebra,  or  universal 
arithmetic — the  method  of  calculating  indeterminate 
quantities,  or  investigating  the  relations  that  subsist 
among  quantities  of  all  kinds,  whether  arithmetical  or 
geometrical — was  developed  from  the  germ  that  Dio- 
phantus  had  left.  Mohammed  Ben  Musa  furnished 
the  solution  of  quadratic  equations,  Omar  Ben  Ibra- 
him that  of  cubic  equations.  The  Saracens  also  gave 
to  trigonometry  its  modern  form,  substituting  sines  for 
chords,  which  had  been  previously  used;  they  elevated 


116  ARABIAN  ASTRONOMY. 

it  into  a  separate  science.  Musa,  above  mentioned,  was 
the  author  of  a  "  Treatise  on  Spherical  Trigonometry." 
Al-Baghadadi  left  one  on  land-surveying,  so  excellent, 
that  by  some  it  has  been  declared  to  be  a  copy  of  Eu- 
clid's lost  work  on  that  subject. 

In  astronomy,  they  not  only  made  catalogues,  but 
maps  of  the  stars  visible  in  their  skies,  giving  to  those  of 
the  larger  magnitudes  the  Arabic  names  they  still  bear 
on  our  celestial  globes.  They  ascertained,  as  we  have 
seen,  the  size  of  the  earth  by  the  measurement  of  a  de- 
gree on  her  surface,  determined  the  obliquity  of  the 
ecliptic,  published  corrected  tables  of  the  sun  and  moon, 
fixed  the  length  of  the  year,  verified  the  precession  of 
the  equinoxes.  The  treatise  of  Albategnius  on  "  The 
Science  of  the  Stars  "  is  spoken  of  by  Laplace  with  re- 
spect; he  also  draws  attention  to  an  important  fragment 
of  Ibn-Junis,  the  astronomer  of  Hakem,  the  Khalif  of 
Egypt,  A.  D.  1000,  as  containing  a  long  series  of  obser- 
vations from  the  time  of  Almansor,  of  eclipses,  equi- 
noxes, solstices,  conjunctions  of  planets,  occultations  of 
stars — observations  which  have  cast  much  light  on  the 
great  variations  of  the  system  of  the  world.  The  Ara- 
bian astronomers  also  devoted  themselves  to  the  con- 
struction and  perfection  of  astronomical  instruments,  to 
the  measurement  of  time  by  clocks  of  various  kinds,  by 
clepsydras  and  sun-dials.  They  were  the  first  to  intro- 
duce, for  this  purpose,  the  use  of  the  pendulum. 

In  the  experimental  sciences,  they  originated  chem- 
istry; they  discovered  some  of  its  most  important  re- 
agents— sulphuric  acid,  nitric  acid,  alcohol.  They  ap- 
plied that  science  in  the  practice  of  medicine,  being  the 
first  to  publish  pharmacopoeias  or  dispensatories,  and  to 
include  in  them  mineral  preparations.  In  mechanics, 
they  had  determined  the  laws  of  falling  bodies,  had 


AGRICULTURE  AND  MANUFACTURES. 

ideas,  by  no  means  indistinct,  of  the  nature  of  gravity; 
they  were  familiar  with  the  theory  of  the  mechanical 
powers.  In  hydrostatics  they  constructed  the  first  tables 
of  the  specific  gravities  of  bodies,  and  wrote  treatises  on 
the  flotation  and  sinking  of  bodies  in  water.  In  optics, 
they  corrected  the  Greek  misconception,  that  a  ray  pro- 
ceeds from  the  eye,  and  touches  the  object  seen,  intro- 
ducing the  hypothesis  that  the  ray  passes  from  the  ob- 
ject to  the  eye.  They  understood  the  phenomena  of 
the  reflection  and  refraction  of  light.  Alhazen  made 
the  great  discovery  of  the  curvilinear  path  of  a  ray  of 
light  through  the  atmosphere,  and  proved  that  we  see 
the  sun  and  moon  before  they  have  risen,  and  after  they 
have  set. 

The  effects  of  this  scientific  activity  are  plainly  per- 
ceived in  the  great  improvements  that  took  place  in 
many  of  the  industrial  arts.  Agriculture  shows  it  in 
better  methods  of  irrigation,  the  skillful  employment 
of  manures,  the  raising  of  improved  breeds  of  cattle, 
the  enactment  of  wise  codes  of  rural  laws,  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  culture  of  rice,  and  that  of  sugar  and  coffee. 
The  manufactures  show  it  in  the  great  extension  of  the 
industries  of  silk,  cotton,  wool;  in  the  fabrication  of 
cordova  and  morocco  leather,  and  paper;  in  mining, 
casting,  and  various  metallurgic  operations;  in  the  mak- 
ing of  Toledo  blades. 

Passionate  lovers  of  poetry  and  music,  they  dedicated 
much  of  their  leisure  time  to  those  elegant  pursuits. 
They  taught  Europe  the  game  of  chess;  they  gave  it  its 
taste  for  works  of  fiction — romances  and  novels.  In  the 
graver  domains  of  literature  they  took  delight:  they  had 
many  admirable  compositions  on  such  subjects  as  the 
instability  of  human  greatness;  the  consequences  of  irre- 

ligion;  the  reverses  of  fortune;  the  origin,  duration, 
10 


1  l  ^     THEIR  THEORY  OP  DEVELOPMENT. 

and  end  of  the  world.  Sometimes,  not  without  sur- 
prise, we  meet  with  ideas  which  we  flatter  ourselves 
have  originated  in  our  own  times.  Thus  our  modern 
doctrines  of  evolution  and  development  were  taught  in 
their  schools.  In  fact,  they  carried  them  much  farther 
than  we  are  disposed  to  do,  extending  them  even  to  in- 
organic or  mineral  things.  The  fundamental  principle 
of  alchemy  was  the  natural  process  of  development  of 
metalline  bodies.  "  When  common  people,"  says  Al- 
Khazini,  writing  in  the  twelfth  century,  "  hear  from 
natural  philosophers  that  gold  is  a  body  which  has  at- 
tained to  perfection  of  maturity,  to  the  goal  of  com- 
pleteness, they  firmly  believe  that  it  is  something  which 
has  gradually  come  to  that  perfection  by  passing  through 
the  forms  of  all  other  metallic  bodies,  so  that  its  gold 
nature  was  originally  lead,  afterward  it  became  tin, 
then  brass,  then  silver,  and  finally  reached  the  develop- 
ment of  gold;  not  knowing  that  the  natural  philoso- 
phers mean,  in  saying  this,  only  something  like  what 
they  mean  when  they  speak  of  man,  and  attribute  to 
him  a  completeness  and  equilibrium  in  nature  and  con- 
stitution— not  that  man  was  once  a  bull,  and  was 
changed  into  an  ass,  and  afterward  into  a  horse,  and  after 
that  into  an  ape,  and  finally  became  a  man." 


CHAPTER   V. 

CONFLICT    RESPECTING    THE    NATURE    OF    THE    SOUL. — 
DOCTRINE   OF  EMANATION   AND   ABSORPTION. 

European  ideas  respecting  the  soul. — It  resembles  the  form  of  the 
body. 

Philosophical  views  of  the  Orientals. — The  Vedic  theology  and 
Buddhism  assert  the  doctrine  of  emanation  and  absorption. — 
It  is  advocated  by  Aristotle,  who  is  followed  by  the  Alexan- 
drian school,  and  subsequently  by  the  Jews  and  Arabians. — 
It  is  found  in  the  writings  of  Erigena. 

Connection  of  this  doctrine  with  the  theory  of  conservation  and 
correlation  of  force. — Parallel  between  the  origin  and  destiny 
of  the  body  and  the  soul. — The  necessity  of  founding  human 
on  comparative  psychology. 

Averroism,  which  is  based  on  these  facts,  is  brought  into  Christen- 
dom through  Spain  and  Sicily. 

History  of  the  repression  of  Averroism. — Revolt  of  Islam  against 
it. — Antagonism  of  the  Jewish  synagogues. — Its  destruction 
undertaken  by  the  papacy. — Institution  of  the  Inquisition  in 
Spain. — Frightful  persecutions  and  their  results. — Expulsion 
of  the  Jews  and  Moors. — Overthrow  of  Averroism  in  Europe. 
— Decisive  action  of  the  late  Vatican  Council. 

THE  pagan  Greeks  and  Romans  believed  that  the 
spirit  of  man  resembles  his  bodily  form,  varying  its 
appearance  with  his  variations,  and  growing  with  his 
growth.  Heroes,  to  whom  it  had  been  permitted  to  de- 
scend into  Hades,  had  therefore  without  difficulty  recog- 
nized their  former  friends.  Not  only  had  the  corporeal 
aspect  been  retained,  but  even  the  customary  raiment. 

The  primitive  Christians,  whose  conceptions  of  a 
future  life  and  of  heaven  and  hell,  the  abodes  of  the 

119 


120  TnE  SOUL. 

blessed  and  the  sinful,  were  far  more  vivid  than  those 
of  their  pagan  predecessors,  accepted  and  intensified 
these  ancient  ideas.  They  did  not  doubt  that  in  the 
world  to  come  they  should  meet  their  friends,  and  hold 
converse  with  them,  as  they  had  done  here  upon  earth 
— an  expectation  that  gives  consolation  to  the  human 
heart,  reconciling  it  to  the  most  sorrowful  bereave- 
ments, and  restoring  to  it  its  dead. 

In  the  uncertainty  as  to  what  becomes  of  the  soul 
in  the  interval  between  its  separation  from  the  body 
and  the  judgment-day,  many  different  opinions  were 
held.  Some  thought  that  it  hovered  over  the  grave, 
some  that  it  wandered  disconsolate  through  the  air. 
In  the  popular  belief,  St.  Peter  sat  as  a  door-keeper  at 
the  gate  of  heaven.  To  him  it  had  been  given  to  bind 
or  to  loose.  He  admitted  or  excluded  the  spirits  of 
men  at  his  pleasure.  Many  persons,  however,  were  dis- 
posed to  deny  him  this  power,  since  his  decisions  would 
be  anticipatory  of  the  judgment-day,  which  would  thus 
be  rendered  needless.  After  the  time  of  Gregory  the 
Great,  the  doctrine  of  purgatory  met  with  general  ac- 
ceptance. A  resting-place  was  provided  for  departed 
spirits. 

That  the  spirits  of  the  dead  occasionally  revisit  the 
living,  or  haunt  their  former  abodes,  has  been  in  all 
ages,  in  all  European  countries,  a  fixed  belief,  not  con- 
fined to  rustics,  but  participated  in  by  the  intelligent.  A 
pleasing  terror  gathers  round  the  winters-evening  fire- 
side at  the  stories  of  apparitions,  goblins,  ghosts.  In 
the  old  times  the  Romans  had  their  lares,  or  spirits  of 
those  who  had  led  virtuous  lives;  their  larvae  or  lemures, 
the  spirits  of  the  wicked;  their  manes,  the  spirits  of 
those  of  whom  the  merits  were  doubtful.  If  human 

• 

testimony  on  such  subjects  can  be  of  any  value,  there  is 


ASIATIC  PSYCHOLOGICAL  VIEWS.  121 

a  body  of  evidence  reaching  from  the  remotest  ages  to 
the  present  time,  as  extensive  and  unimpeachable  as  is 
to  be  found  in  support  of  any  thing  whatever,  that  these 
shades  of  the  dead  congregate  near  tombstones,  or  take 
up  their  secret  abode  in  the  gloomy  chambers  of  dilapi- 
dated castles,  or  walk  by  moonlight  in  moody  solitude. 

While  these  opinions  have  universally  found  popular 
acceptance  in  Europe,  others  of  a  very  different  nature 
have  prevailed  extensively  in  Asia,  and  indeed  very 
generally  in  the  higher  regions  of  thought.  Ecclesias- 
tical authority  succeeded  in  repressing  them  in  the  six- 
teenth century,  but  they  never  altogether  disappeared. 
In  our  own  times  so  silently  and  extensively  have  they 
been  diffused  in  Europe,  that  it  was  found  expedient  in 
the  papal  Syllabus  to  draw  them  in  a  very  conspicuous 
manner  into  the  open  light;  and  the  Vatican  Council, 
agreeing  in  that  view  of  their  obnoxious  tendency  and 
secret  spread,  has  in  an  equally  prominent  and  signal 
manner  among  its  first  canons  anathematized  all  per- 
sons who  hold  them.  "  Let  him  be  anathema  who  says 
that  spiritual  things  are  emanations  of  the  divine  sub- 
stance, or  that  the  divine  essence  by  manifestation  or 
development  becomes  all  things."  In  view  of  this  au- 
thoritative action,  it  is  necessary  now  to  consider  the 
character  and  history  of  these  opinions. 

Ideas  respecting  the  nature  of  God  necessarily  in- 
fluence ideas  respecting  the  nature  of  the  soul.  The 
eastern  Asiatics  had  adopted  the  conception  of  an  im- 
personal God,  and,  as  regards  the  soul,  its  necessary  con- 
sequence, the  doctrine  of  emanation  and  absorption. 

Thus  the  Vedic  theology  is  based  on  the  acknowl- 
edgment of  a  universal  spirit  pervading  all  things. 
"  There  is  in  truth  but  one  Deity,  the  supreme  Spirit; 
he  is  of  the  same  nature  as  the  soul  of  man."  Both  the 


122  EMANATION  AND  ABSORPTION. 

Vedas  and  the  Institutes  of  Menu  affirm  that  the  soul 
is  an  emanation  of  the  all-pervading  Intellect,  and  that 
it  is  necessarily  destined  to  be  reabsorbcd.  They  con- 
sider it  to  be  without  form,  and  that  visible  Nature, 
with  all  its  beauties  and  harmonies,  is  only  the  shadow 
of  God. 

Vedaism  developed  itself  into  Buddhism,  which  has 
become  the  faith  of  a  majority  of  the  human  race.  This 
system  acknowledges  that  there  is  a  supreme  Power,  but 
denies  that  there  is  a  supreme  Being.  It  contemplates 
the  existence  of  Force,  giving  rise  as  its  manifestation 
to  matter.  It  adopts  the  theory  of  emanation  and  ab- 
sorption. In  a  burning  taper  it  sees  an  effigy  of  man — 
an  embodiment  of  matter,  and  an  evolution  of  force. 
If  we  interrogate  it  respecting  the  destiny  of  the  soul, 
it  demands  of  us  what  has  become  of  the  flame  when  it 
is  blown  out,  and  in  what  condition  it  was  before  the 
taper  was  lighted.  Was  it  a  nonentity?  Has  it  been 
annihilated?  It  admits  that  the  idea  of  personality 
which  has  deluded  us  through  life  may  not  be  instan- 
taneously extinguished  at  death,  but  may  be  lost  by 
slow  degrees.  On  this  is  founded  the  doctrine  of  trans- 
migration. But  at  length  reunion  with  the  universal 
Intellect  takes  place,  Nirwana  is  reached,  oblivion  is 
attained,  a  state  that  has  no  relation  to  matter,  space,  or 
time,  the  state  into  which  the  departed  flame  of  the  ex- 
tinguished taper  has  gone,  the  state  in  which  we  were 
before  we  were  born.  This  is  the  end  that  we  ought 
to  hope  for;  it  is  reabsorption  in  the  universal  Force — 
supreme  bliss,  eternal  rest. 

Through  Aristotle  these  doctrines  were  first  intro- 
duced into  Eastern  Europe;  indeed,  eventually,  as  we 
shall  see,  he  was  regarded  as  the  author  of  them.  They 
exerted  a  dominating  influence  in  the  later  period  of 


EMANATION  AND  ABSORPTION.  123 

the  Alexandrian  school.  Philo,  the  Jew,  who  lived  in 
the  time  of  Caligula,  based  his  philosophy  on  the  theory 
of  emanation.  Plotinus  not  only  accepted  that  theory 
as  applicable  to  the  soul  of  man,  but  as  affording  an 
illustration  of  the  nature  of  the  Trinity.  For,  as  a  beam 
of  light  emanates  from  the  sun,  and  as  warmth  ema- 
nates from  the  beam  when  it  touches  material  bodies, 
so  from  the  Father  the  Son  emanates,  and  thence  the 
Holy  Ghost.  From  these  views  Plotinus  derived  a  prac- 
tical religious  system,  teaching  the  devout  how  to  pass 
into  a  condition  of  ecstasy,  a  foretaste  of  absorption 
into  the  universal  mundane  soul.  In  that  condition  the 
soul  loses  its  individual  consciousness.  In  like  manner 
Porphyry  sought  absorption  in  or  union  with  God.  He 
was  a  Tyrian  by  birth,  established  a  school  at  Borne, 
and  wrote  against  Christianity;  his  treatise  on  that  sub- 
ject was  answered  by  Eusebius  and  St.  Jerome,  but  the 
Emperor  Theodosius  silenced  it  more  effectually  by 
causing  all  the  copies  to  be  burnt.  Porphyry  bewails 
his  own  unworthiness,  saying  that  he  had  been  united  to 
God  in  ecstasy  but  once  in  eighty-six  years,  whereas  his 
master  Plotinus  had  been  so  united  six  times  in  sixty 
years.  A  complete  system  of  theology,  based  on  the 
theory  of  emanation,  was  constructed  by  Proclus,  who 
speculated  on  the  manner  in  which  absorption  takes 
place:  whether  the  soul  .js  instantly  reabsorbed  and  re- 
united in  the  moment  of  death,  or  whether  it  retains 
the  sentiment  of  personality  for  a  time,  and  subsides 
into  complete  reunion  by  successive  steps. 

From  the  Alexandrian  Greeks  these  ideas  passed  to 
the  Saracen  philosophers,  who  very  soon  after  the 
capture  of  the  great  Egyptian  city  abandoned  to  the 
lower  orders  their  anthropomorphic  notions  of  the  na- 
ture of  God  and  "the  simulacral  form  of  the  spirit  of 


124  ARABIC  PSYCHOLOGY. 

man.  As  Arabism  developed  itself  into  a  distinct  scien- 
tific system,  the  theories  of  emanation  and  absorption 
were  among  its  characteristic  features.  In  this  aban- 
donment of  vulgar  Mohammedanism,  the  example  of 
the  Jews  greatly  assisted.  They,  too,  had  given  up  the 
anthropomorphism  of  their  ancestors;  they  had  ex- 
changed the  God  who  of  old  lived  behind  the  veil  of 
the  temple  for  an  infinite  Intelligence  pervading  the 
universe,  and,  avowing  their  inability  to  conceive  that 
any  thing  which  had  on  a  sudden  been  called  into  ex- 
istence should  be  capable  of  immortality,  they  affirmed 
that  the  soul  of  man  is  connected  with  a  past  of  which 
there  was  no  beginning,  and  with  a  future  to  which 
there  is  no  end. 

In  the  intellectual  history  of  Arabism  the  Jew  and 
the  Saracen  are  continually  seen  together.  It  was  the 
same  in  their  political  history,  whether  we  consider  it  in 
Syria,  in  Egypt,  or  in  Spain.  From  them  conjointly 
Western  Europe  derived  its  philosophical  ideas,  which 
in  the  course  of  time  culminated  in  Averroism;  Averro- 
ism  is  philosophical  Islamism.  Europeans  generally  re- 
garded Averroes  as  the  author  of  these  heresies,  and  the 
orthodox  branded*  him  accordingly,  but  he  was  nothing 
more  than  their  collector  and  commentator.  His  works 
invaded  Christendom  by  two  routes:  from  Spain  through 
Southern  France  they  reached  Upper  Italy,  engender- 
ing numerous  heresies  on  their  way;  from  Sicily  they 
passed  to  Naples  and  South  Italy,  under  the  auspices 
of  Frederick  II. 

But,  long  before  Europe  suffered  this  great  intel- 
lectual invasion,  there  were  what  might,  perhaps,  be 
termed  sporadic  instances  of  Orientalism.  As  an  ex- 
ample I  may  quote  the  views  of  John  Erigena  (A.  D.  800). 
He  had  adopted  and  taught  the  philosophy  of  Aristotle, 


ERIGENA.  125 

had  made  a  pilgrimage  to  the  birthplace  of  that  philos- 
opher, and  indulged  a  hope  of  uniting  philosophy  and 
religion  in  the  manner  proposed  by  the  Christian  eccle- 
siastics who  were  then  studying  in  the  Mohammedan 
universities  of  Spain.  He  was  a  native  of  Britain. 

In  a  letter  to  Charles  the  Bald,  Anastasius  expresses 
his  astonishment  "  how  such  a  barbarian  man,  coming 
from  the  very  ends  of  the  earth,  and  remote  from  human 
conversation,  could  comprehend  things  so  clearly,  and 
transfer  them  into  another  language  so  well."  The 
general  intention  of  his  writings  was,  as  we  have  said, 
to  unite  philosophy  with  religion,  but  his  treatment  of 
these  subjects  brought  him  under  ecclesiastical  censure, 
and  some  of  his  works  were  adjudged  to  the  flames. 
His  most  important  book  is  entitled  "  De  Divisione  Na- 
turae." 

Erigena's  philosophy  rests  upon  the  observed  and 
admitted  fact  that  every  living  thing  comes  from  some- 
thing that  had  previously  lived.  The  visible  world, 
being  a  world  of  life,  has  therefore  emanated  necessarily 
from  some  primordial  existence,  and  thnt  existence  is 
God,  who  is  thus  the  originator  and  conservator  of  all. 
Whatever  we  see  maintains  itself  as  a  visible  thing 
through  force  derived  from  him,  and,  were  that  force 
withdrawn,  it  must  necessarily  disappear.  Erigena  thus 
conceives  of  the  Deity  as  an  unceasing  participator  in 
Nature,  being  its  preserver,  maintainer,  upholder,  and 
in  that  respect  answering  to  the  soul  of  the  world  of  the 
Greeks.  The  particular  life  of  individuals  is  therefore 
a  part  of  general  existence,  that  is,  of  the  mundane  soul. 

If  ever  there  were  a  withdrawal  of  the  maintaining 
power,  all  things  must  return  to  the  source  from  which 
they  issued — that  is,  they  must  return  to  God,  and  be  ab- 
sorbed in  him.  All  visible  Nature  must  thus  pass  back 


126  ERIGENA. 

into  "  the  Intellect "  at  last.  "  The  death  of  the  flesh  is 
the  auspices  of  the  restitution  of  things,  and  of  a  return 
to  their  ancient  conservation.  So  sounds  revert  back  to 
the  air  in  which  they  were  born,  and  by  which  they 
were  maintained,  and  they  are  heard  no  more;  no  man 
knows  what  has  become  of  them.  In  that  final  absorp- 
tion which,  after  a  lapse  of  time,  must  necessarily  come, 
God  will  be  all  in  all,  and  nothing  exist  but  him  alone." 
"  I  contemplate  him  as  the  beginning  and  cause  of  all 
things;  all  things  that  are  and  those  that  have  been,  but 
now  are  not,  were  created  from  him,  and  by  him,  and 
in  him.  I  also  view  him  as  the  end  and  intransgressible 
term  of  all  things.  .  .  .  There  is  a  fourfold  conception 
of  universal  Nature — two  views  of  divine  Nature,  as 
origin  and  end;  two  also  of  framed  Nature,  causes  and 
effects.  There  is  nothing  eternal  but  God." 

The  return  of  the  soul  to  the  universal  Intellect  is 
designated  by  Erigena  as  Theosis,  or  Deification.  In 
that  final  absorption  all  remembrance  of  its  past  experi- 
ences is  lost.  The  soul  reverts  to  the  condition  in  which 
it  was  before  it  animated  the  body.  Necessarily,  there- 
fore, Erigena  fell  under  the  displeasure  of  the  Church. 

It  was  in  India  that  men  first  recognized  the  fact 
that  force  is  indestructible  and  eternal.  This  implies 
ideas  more  or  less  distinct  of  that  which  we  now  term 
its  "  correlation  and  conservation."  Considerations  con- 
nected with  the  stability  of  the  universe  give  strength 
to  this  view,  since  it  is  clear  that,  were  there  either  an 
increase  or  a  diminution,  the  order  of  the  world  must 
cease.  The  definite  and  invariable  amount  of  energy  in 
the  universe  must  therefore  be  accepted  as  a  scientific 
fact.  The  changes  we  witness  are  in  its  distribution. 

But,  since  the  soul  must  be  regarded  as  an  active 
principle,  to  call  a  new  one  into  existence  out  of  noth- 


AL-GAZZALI'S  PSYCHOLOGY.  127 

ing  is  necessarily  to  add  to  the  force  previously  in  the 
world.  And,  if  this  has  been  done  in  the  case  of  every 
individual  who  has  been  born,  and  is  to  be  repeated  for 
every  individual  hereafter,  the  totality  of  force  must 
be  continually  increasing. 

Moreover,  to  many  devout  persons  there  is  some- 
thing very  revolting  in  the  suggestion  that  the  Al- 
mighty is  a  servitor  to  the  caprices  and  lusts  of  man, 
and  that,  at  a  certain  term  after  its  origin,  it  is  necessary 
for  him  to  create  for  the  embryo  a  soul. 

Considering  man  as  composed  of  two  portions,  a  soul 
and  a  body,  the  obvious  relations  of  the  latter  may  cast 
much  light  on  the  mysterious,  the  obscure  relations  of 
the  former.  Now,  the  substance  of  which  the  body  con- 
sists is  obtained  from  the  general  mass  of  matter  around 
us,  and  after  death  to  that  general  mass  it  is  restored. 
Has  Nature,  then,  displayed  before  our  eyes  in  the  ori- 
gin, mutations,  and  destiny  of  the  material  part,  the 
body,  a  revelation  that  may  guide  us  to  a  knowledge  of 
the  origin  and  destiny  of  the  companion,  the  spiritual 
part,  the  soul? 

Let  us  listen  for  a  moment  to  one  of  the  most  pow- 
erful of  Mohammedan  writers: 

"  God  has  created  the  spirit  of  man  out  of  a  drop 
of  his  own  light;  its  destiny  is  to  return  to  him.  Do 
not  deceive  yourself  with  the  vain  imagination  that  it 
will  die  when  the  body  dies.  The  form  you  had  on 
your  entrance  into  this  world,  and  your  present  form, 
are  not  the  same;  hence  there  is  no  necessity  of  your 
perishing,  on  account  of  the  perishing  of  your  body. 
Your  spirit  came  into  this  world  a  stranger;  it  is  only 
sojourning,  in  a  temporary  home.  From  the  trials  and 
tempests  of  this  troublesome  life,  our  refuge  is  in  God. 
In  reunion  with  him  we  shall  find  eternal  rest — a  rest 


128        ARE  ANIMALS  AUTOMATA  f 

without  sorrow,  a  joy  without  pain,  a  strength  without 
infirmity,  a  knowledge  without  doubt,  a  tranquil  and 
yet  an  ecstatic  vision  of  the  source  of  life  and  light  and 
glory,  the  source  from  which  we  came."  So  says  the 
Saracen  philosopher,  Al-Gazzali  (A.  D.  1010). 

In  a  stone  the  material  particles  are  in  a  state  of 
stable  equilibrium;  it  may,  therefore,  endure  forever. 
An  animal  is  in  reality  only  a  form  through  which  a 
stream  of  matter  is  incessantly  flowing.  It  receives  its 
supplies,  and  dismisses  its  wastes.  In  this  it  resembles 
a  cataract,  a  river,  a  flame.  The  particles  that  compose 
it  at  one  instant  have  departed  from  it  the  next.  It 
depends  for  its  continuance  on  exterior  supplies.  It  has 
a  definite  duration  in  time,  and  an  inevitable  moment 
comes  in  which  it  must  die. 

In  the  great  problem  of  psychology  we  can  not  ex- 
pect to  reach  a  scientific  result,  if  we  persist  in  restrict- 
ing ourselves  to  the  contemplation  of  one  fact.  We 
must  avail  ourselves  of  all  accessible  facts.  Human 
psychology  can  never  be  completely  resolved  except 
through  comparative  psychology.  With  Descartes,  we 
must  inquire  whether  the  souls  of  animals  be  relations 
of  the  human  soul,  less  perfect  members  in  the  same 
series  of  development.  We  must  take  account  of  what 
we  discover  in  the  intelligent  principle  of  the  ant,  as 
well  as  what  we  discern  in  the  intelligent  principle  of 
man.  Where  would  human  physiology  be,  if  it  were 
not  illuminated  by  the  bright  irradiations  of  compara- 
tive physiology? 

Brodie,  after  an  exhaustive  consideration  of  the  facts, 
affirms  that  the  mind  of  animals  is  essentially  the  same 
as  that  of  man.  Every  one  familiar  with  the  dog  will 
admit  that  that  creature  knows  right  from  wrong,  and 
is  conscious  when  he  has  committed  a  fault.  Many 


ARE  ANIMALS  AUTOMATA?  129 

domestic  animals  have  reasoning  powers,  and  employ 
proper  means  for  the  attainment  of  ends.  How  numer- 
ous are  the  anecdotes  related  of  the  intentional  actions 
of  the  elephant  and  the  ape!  Nor  is  this  apparent 
intelligence  due  to  imitation,  to  their  association  with 
man,  for  wild  animals  that  have  no  such  relation  exhibit 
similar  properties.  In  different  species,  the  capacity  and 
character  greatly  vary.  Thus  the  dog  is  not  only  more 
intelligent,  but  has  social  and  moral  qualities  that  the 
cat  does  not  possess;  the  former  loves  his  master,  the 
latter  her  home. 

Du  Bois-Eeymond  makes  this  striking  remark: 
"  With  awe  and  wonder  must  the  student  of  Nature 
regard  that  microscopic  molecule  of  nervous  substance 
which  is  the  seat  of  the  laborious,  constructive,  orderly, 
loyal,  dauntless  soul  of  the  ant.  It  has  developed 
itself  to  its  present  state  through  a  countless  series  of 
generations."  What  an  impressive  inference  we  may 
draw  from  the  statement  of  Huber,  who  has  written  so 
well  on  this  subject:  "  If  you  will  watch  a  single  ant  at 
work,  you  can  tell  what  he  will  next  do! "  He  is  con- 
sidering the  matter,  and  reasoning  as  you  are  doing. 
Listen  to  one  of  the  many  anecdotes  which  Huber,  at 
once  truthful  and  artless,  relates:  "  On  the  visit  of  an 
overseer  ant  to  the  works,  when  the  laborers  had  begun 
the  roof  too  soon,  he  examined  it  and  had  it  taken  down, 
the  wall  raised  to  the  proper  height,  and  a  new  ceiling 
constructed  with  the  fragments  of  the  old  one."  Surely 
these  insects  are  not  automata,  they  show  intention. 
They  recognize  their  old  companions,  who  have  been 
shut  up  from  them  for  many  months,  and  exhibit  senti- 
ments of  joy  at  their  return.  Their  antennal  language 
is  capable  of  manifold  expression;  it  suits  the  interior 
of  the  nest,  where  all  is  dark. 


130  ARE  ANIMALS  AUTOMATA? 

While  solitary  insects  do  not  live  to  raise  their  young, 
social  insects  have  a  longer  term,  they  exhibit  moral 
allVrt  ions  and  educate  their  offspring.  Patterns  of  pa- 
tience and  industry,  some  of  these  insignificant  creat- 
ures will  work  sixteen  or  eighteen  hours  a  day.  Few 
men  arc  capable  of  sustained  mental  application  more 
than  four  or  five  hours. 

Similarity  of  effects  indicates  similarity  of  causes; 
similarity  of  actions  demands  similarity  of  organs.  I 
would  ask  the  reader  of  these  paragraphs,  who  is  famil- 
iar with  the  habits  of  animals,  and  especially  with  the 
social  relations  of  that  wonderful  insect  to  which  refer- 
ence has  been  made,  to  turn  to  the  nineteenth  chapter  of 
my  work  on  the  "  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe," 
in  which  he  will  find  a  description  of  the  social  system 
of  the  Incas  of  Peru.  Perhaps,  then,  in  view  of  the 
similarity  of  the  social  institutions  and  personal  conduct 
of  the  insect,  and  the  social  institutions  and  personal 
conduct  of  the  civilized  Indian — the  one  an  insignificant 
speck,  the  other  a  man — he  will  not  be  disposed  to  dis- 
agree with  me  in  the  opinion  that  "  from  bees,  and 
wasps,  and  ants,  and  birds,  from  all  that  low  animal  life 
on  which  he  looks  with  supercilious  contempt,  man  is 
destined  one  day  to  learn  what  in  truth  he  really  is." 

The  views  of  Descartes,  who  regarded  all  insects  as 
automata,  can  scarcely  be  accepted  without  modifica- 
tion. Insects  are  automata  only  so  far  as  the  action  of 
their  ventral  cord,  and  that  portion  of  their  cephalic 
ganglia  which  deals  with  contemporaneous  impressions, 
is  concerned. 

It  is  one  of  the  functions  of  vesicular-nervous  mate- 
rial to  retain  traces  or  relics  of  impressions  brought  to 
it  by  the  organs  of  sense;  hence,  nervous  ganglia,  being 
composed  of  that  material,  may  be  considered  as  regis- 


FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  NERVOUS  SYSTEM.       131 

tering  apparatus.  They  also  introduce  the  element  of 
time  into  the  action  of  the  nervous  mechanism.  An 
impression,  which  without  them  might  have  forthwith 
ended  in  reflex  action,  is  delayed,  and  with  this  duration 
come  all  those  important  effects  arising  through  the  in- 
teraction of  many  impressions,  old  and  new,  upon  each 
other. 

There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  spontaneous,  or  self- 
originated,  thought.  Every  intellectual  act  is  the  con- 
sequence of  some  preceding  act.  It  conies  into  exist- 
ence in  virtue  of  something  that  has  gone  before.  Two 
minds  constituted  precisely  alike,  and  placed  under  the 
influence  of  precisely  the  same  environment,  must  give 
rise  to  precisely  the  same  thought.  To  such  sameness 
of  action  we  allude  in  the  popular  expression  "  common- 
sense  " — a  term  full  of  meaning.  In  the  origination  of 
a  thought  there  are  two  distinct  conditions:  the  state  of 
the  organism  as  dependent  on  antecedent  impressions, 
and  on  the  existing  physical  circumstances. 

In  the  cephalic  ganglia  of  insects  are  stored  up  the 
relics  of  impressions  that  have  been  made  upon  the 
common  peripheral  nerves,  and  in  them  are  kept  those 
which  are  brought  in  by  the  organs  of  special  sense — 
the  visual,  olfactive,  auditory.  The  interaction  of  these 
raises  insects  above  mere  mechanical  automata,  in  which 
the  reaction  instantly  follows  the  impression. 

In  all  cases  the  action  of  every  nerve-centre,  no  mat- 
ter what  its  stage  of  development  may  be,  high  or  low, 
depends  upon  an  essential  chemical  condition — oxida- 
tion. Even  in  man,  if  the  supply  of  arterial  blood  be 
stopped  but  for  a  moment,  the  nerve-mechanism  loses 
its  power;  if  diminished,  it  correspondingly  declines; 
if,  on  the  contrary,  it  be  increased — as  when  nitrogen 
monoxide  is  breathed — there  is  more  energetic  action. 


132  REGISTERED  IMPRESSIONS. 

Hence  there  arises  a  need  of  repair,  a  necessity  for  rest 
and  sleep. 

Two  fundamental  ideas  are  essentially  attached  to 
all  our  perceptions  of  external  things:  they  are  SPACE 
and  TIME,  and  for  these  provision  is  made  in  the  ner- 
vous mechanism  while  it  is  yet  in  an  almost  rudimentary 
state.  The  eye  is  the  organ  of  space,  the  ear  of  time; 
the  perceptions  of  which  by  the  elaborate  mechanism 
of  these  structures  become  infinitely  more  precise  than 
would  be  possible  if  the  sense  of  touch  alone  were  re- 
sorted to. 

There  are  some  simple  experiments  which  illustrate 
the  vestiges  of  ganglionic  impressions.  If  on  a  cold, 
polished  metal,  as  a  new  razor,  any  object,  such  as  a 
wafer,  be  laid,  and  the  metal  be  then  breathed  upon, 
and,  when  the  moisture  has  had  time  to  disappear,  the 
wafer  be  thrown  off,  though  now  the  most  critical  in- 
spection of  the  polished  surface  can  discover  no  trace  of 
any  form,  if  we  breathe  once  more  upon  it,  a  spectral 
image  of  the  wafer  comes  plainly  into  view;  and  this 
may  be  done  again  and  again.  Nay,  more,  if  the  pol- 
ished metal  be  carefully  put  aside  where  nothing  can 
deteriorate  its  surface,  and  be  so  kept  for  many  months, 
on  breathing  again  upon  it  the  shadowy  form  emerges. 

Such  an  illustration  shows  how  trivial  an  impression 
may  be  thus  registered  and  preserved.  But,  if,  on  such 
an  inorganic  surface,  an  impression  may  thus  be  indel- 
ibly marked,  how  much  more  likely  in  the  purposely- 
constructed  ganglion!  A  shadow  never  falls  upon  a 
wall  without  leaving  thereupon  a  permanent  trace,  a 
trace  which  might  be  made  visible  by  resorting  to  proper 
processes.  Photographic  operations  are  cases  in  point. 
The  portraits  of  our  friends,  or  landscape  view,  may 
be  hidden  on  the  sensitive  surface  from  the  eye,  but 


REGISTERED  IMPRESSIONS.  133 

they  are  ready  to  make  their  appearance  as  soon  as 
proper  developers  are  resorted  to.  A  spectre  is  con- 
cealed on  a  silver  or  glassy  surface  until,  by  our  necro- 
mancy, we  make  it  come  forth  into  the  visible  world. 
Upon  the  walls  of  our  most  private  apartments,  where 
we  think  the  eye  of  intrusion  is  altogether  shut  out 
and  our  retirement  can  never  be  profaned,  there  exist 
the  vestiges  of  all  our  acts,  silhouettes  of  whatever  we 
have  done. 

If,  after  the  eyelids  have  been  closed  for  some  time, 
as  when  we  first  awake  in  the  morning,  we  suddenly 
and  steadfastly  gaze  at  a  brightly-illuminated  object 
and  then  quickly  close  the  lids  again,  a  phantom  image 
is  perceived  in  the  indefinite  darkness  beyond  us.  We 
may  satisfy  ourselves  that  this  is  not  a  fiction,  but  a  re- 
ality, for  many  details  that  we  had  not  time  to  identify 
in  the  momentary  glance  may  be  contemplated  at  our 
leisure  in  the  phantom.  We  may  thus  make  out  the  pat- 
tern of  such  an  object  as  a  lace  curtain  hanging  in  the 
window,  or  the  branches  of  a  tree  beyond.  By  degrees 
the  image  becomes  less  and  less  distinct;  in  a  minute 
or  two  it  has  disappeared.  It  seems  to  have  a  ten- 
dency to  float  away  in  the  vacancy  before  us.  If  we 
attempt  to  follow  it  by  moving  the  eyeball,  it  suddenly 
vanishes. 

Such  a  duration  of  impressions  on  the  retina  proves 
that  the  effect  of  external  influences  on  nerve-vesicles 
is  not  necessarily  transitory.  In  this  there  is  a  corre- 
spondence to  the  duration,  the  emergence,  the  extinc- 
tion, of  impressions  on  photographic  preparations.  Thus, 
I  have  seen  landscapes  and  architectural  views  taken  in 
Mexico  developed,  as  artists  say,  months  subsequently 
in  New  York — the  images  coming  out,  after  the  long 
voyage,  in  all  their  proper  forms  and  in  all  their  proper 
11 


134  EXPLANATION  OF  MKMORY. 

contrast  of  light  and  shade.  The  photograph  had  for- 
gotten nothing.  It  had  equally  preserved  the  contour 
of  the  everlasting  mountains  and  the  passing  smoke  of 
a  bandit-fire. 

Are  there,  then,  contained  in  the  brain  more  perma- 
nently, as  in  the  retina  more  transiently,  the  vestiges 
of  impressions  that  have  been  gathered  by  the  sensory 
organs?  Is  this  the  explanation  of  memory — the 
Mind  contemplating  such  pictures  of  past  things  and 
events  as  have  been  committed  to  her  custody?  In  her 
silent  galleries  are  there  hung  micrographs  of  the  living 
and  the  dead,  of  scenes  that  we  have  visited,  of  inci- 
dents in  which  we  have  borne  a  part?  Are  these  abid- 
ing impressions  mere  signal-marks,  like  the  letters  of  a 
book,  which  impart  ideas  to  the  mind?  or  are  they  actual 
picture-images,  inconceivably  smaller  than  those  made 
for  us  by  artists,  in  which,  by  the  aid  of  a  microscope, 
we  can  see,  in  a  space  not  bigger  than  a  pinhole,  a  whole 
family  group  at  a  glance? 

The  phantom  images  of  the  retina  are  not  percep- 
tible in  the  light  of  the  day.  Those  that  exist  in  the 
sensorium  in  like  manner  do  not  attract  our  attention 
so  long  as  the  sensory  organs  are  in  vigorous  operation, 
and  occupied  in  bringing  new  impressions  in.  But,  when 
those  organs  become  weary  or  dull,  or  when  we  experi- 
ence hours  of  great  anxiety,  or  are  in  twilight  reveries, 
or  are  asleep,  the  latent  apparitions  have  their  vivid- 
ness increased  by  the  contrast,  and  obtrude  themselves 
on  the  mind.  For  the  same  reason  they  occupy  us  in 
the  delirium  of  fevers,  and  doubtless  also  in  the  solemn 
moments  of  death.  During  a  third  part  of  our  life,  in 
sleep,  we  are  withdrawn  from  external  influences;  hear- 
ing and  sight  and  the  other  senses  are  inactive,  but  the 
never-sleeping  Mind,  that  pensive,  that  veiled  enchant- 


NATURE  OF  RELIGIOUS  IMPRESSIONS.         135 

ress,  in  her  mysterious  retirement,  looks  over  the  am- 
brotypes  she  has  collected — ambrotypes,  for  they  are 
truly  unfading  impressions — and,  combining  them  to- 
gether, as  they  chance  to  occur,  constructs  from  them 
the  panorama  of  a  dream. 

Nature  has  thus  implanted  in  the  organization  of 
every  man  means  which  impressively  suggest  to  him  the 
immortality  of  the  soul  and  a  future  life.  Even  the 
benighted  savage  thus  sees  in  his  visions  the  fading 
forms  of  landscapes,  which  are,  perhaps,  connected  with 
some  of  his  most  pleasant  recollections;  and  what  other 
conclusion  can  he  possibly  extract  from  those  unreal 
pictures  than  that  they  are  the  foreshadowings  of  an- 
other land  beyond  that  in  which  his  lot  is  cast?  At 
intervals  he  is  visited  in  his  dreams  by  the  resemblances 
of  those  whom  he  has  loved  or  hated  while  they  were 
alive;  and  these  manifestations  are  to  him  incontro- 
vertible proofs  of  the  existence  and  immortality  of  the 
soul.  In  our  most  refined  social  conditions  we  are 
never  able  to  shake  off  the  impressions  of  these  occur- 
rences, and  are  perpetually  drawing  from  them  the  same 
conclusions  that  our  uncivilized  ancestors  did.  Our 
more  elevated  condition  of  life  in  no  respect  relieves 
us  from  the  inevitable  operation  of  our  own  organiza- 
tion, any  more  than  it  relieves  us  from  infirmities  and 
disease.  In  these  respects,  all  over  the  globe  men  are 
on  an  equality.  Savage  or  civilized,  we  carry  within 
us  a  mechanism  which  presents  us  with  mementoes  of 
the  most  solemn  facts  with  which  we  can  be  concerned. 
It  wants  only  moments  of  repose  or  sickness,  when  the 
influence  of  external  things  is  diminished,  to  come  into 
full  play,  and  these  are  precisely  the  moments  when  we 
are  best  prepared  for  the  truths  it  is  going  to  suggest. 
That  mechanism  is  no  respecter  of  persons.  It  neither 


136      EFFECT  OF  REGISTERED  IMPRESSIONS. 

permits  the  haughtiest  to  be  free  from  the  monitions, 
nor  leaves  the  humblest  without  the  consolation  of  a 
knowledge  of  another  life.  Open  to  no  opportunities 
of  being  tampered  with  by  the  designing  or  interested, 
requiring  no  extraneous,  human  agency  for  its  effect, 
but  always  present  with  every  man  wherever  he  may 
go,  it  marvelously  extracts  from  vestiges  of  the  impres- 
sions of  the  past  overwhelming  proofs  of  the  realities  of 
the  future,  and,  gathering  its  power  from  what  would 
seem  to  be  a  most  unlikely  source,  it  insensibly  leads 
us,  no  matter  who  or  where  we  may  be,  to  a  profound 
belief  in  the  immortal  and  imperishable,  from  phantoms 
which  have  scarcely  made  their  appearance  before  they 
are  ready  to  vanish  away. 

The  insect  differs  from  a  mere  automaton  in  this, 
that  it  is  influenced  by  old,  by  registered  impressions. 
In  the  higher  forms  of  animated  life  that  registration 
becomes  more  and  more  complete,  memory  becomes 
more  perfect.  There  is  not  any  necessary  resemblance 
between  an  external  form  and  its  ganglionic  impres- 
sion, any  more  than  there  is  between  the  words  of  a 
message  delivered  in  a  telegraphic  office  and  the  signals 
which  the  telegraph  may  give  to  the  distant  station; 
any  more  than  there  is  between  the  letters  of  a  printed 
page  and  the  acts  or  scenes  they  describe,  but  the  let- 
ters call  up  with  clearness  to  the  mind  of  the  reader 
the  events  and  scenes. 

An  animal  without  any  apparatus  for  the  retention 
of  impressions  must  be  a  pure  automaton — it  cannot 
have  memory.  From  insignificant  and  uncertain  begin- 
nings, such  an  apparatus  is  gradually  evolved,  and,  as 
its  development  advances,  the  intellectual  capacity  in- 
creases. In  man,  this  retention  or  registration  reaches 
perfection;  he  guides  himself  by  past  as  well  as  by 


COMMUNICATION  OF  KNOWLEDGE.  137 

present  impressions;  he  is  influenced  by  experience;  his 
conduct  is  determined  by  reason. 

A  most  important  advance  is  made  when  the  capa- 
bility is  acquired  by  any  animal  of  imparting  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  impressions  stored  up  in  its  own  nerve-cen- 
tres to  another  of  the  same  kind.  This  marks  the  ex- 
tension of  individual  into  social  life,  and  indeed  is  essen- 
tial thereto.  In  the  higher  insects  it  is  accomplished  by 
antenna!  contacts,  in  man  by  speech.  Humanity,  in  its 
earlier,  its  savage  stages,  was  limited  to  this:  the  knowl- 
edge of  one  person  could  be  transmitted  to  another  by 
conversation.  The  acts  and  thoughts  of  one  generation 
could  be  imparted  to  another,  and  influence  its  acts  and 
thoughts. 

But  tradition  has  its  limit.  The  faculty  of  speech 
makes  society  possible — nothing  more. 

Not  without  interest  do  we  remark  the  progress  of 
development  of  this  function.  The  invention  of  the  art 
of  writing  gave  extension  and  durability  to  the  registra- 
tion or  record  of  impressions.  These,  which  hed  hitherto 
been  stored  up  in  the  brain  of  one  man,  might  now  be 
imparted  to  the  whole  human  race,  and  be  made  to  en- 
dure forever.  Civilization  became  possible — for  civili- 
zation cannot  exist  without  writing,  or  the  means  of 
record  in  some  shape. 

From  this  psychological  point  of  view  we  perceive 
the  real  significance  of  the  invention  of  printing — a  de- 
velopment of  writing  which,  by  increasing  the  rapidity 
of  the  diffusion  of  ideas,  and  insuring  their  permanence, 
tends  to  promote  civilization  and  to  unify  the  human  race. 

In  the  foregoing  paragraphs,  relating  to  nervous  im- 
pressions, their  registry,  and  the  consequences  that  spring 
from  them,  I  have  given  an  abstract  of  views  presented 
in  my  work  on  "  Human  Physiology,"  published  in 


138  THEORY  OF  EMANATION. 

1856,  and  may,  therefore,  refer  the  reader  to  the  chap- 
ter on  "  Inverse  Vision,  or  Cerebral  Sight; "  to  Chapter 
XIV.,  Book  I.;  and  to  Chapter  VIII.,  Book  II.,  of  that 
work,  for  other  particulars. 

The  only  path  to  scientific  human  psychology  is 
through  comparative  psychology.  It  is  a  long  and 
wearisome  path,  but  it  leads  to  truth. 

Is  there,  then,  a  vast  spiritual  existence  pervading 
the  universe,  even  as  there  is  a  vast  existence  of  matter 
pervading  it — a  spirit  which,  as  a  great  German  author 
tells  us,  "  sleeps  in  the  stone,  dreams  in  the  animal, 
awakes  in  man?  "  Does  the  soul  arise  from  the  one  as 
the  body  arises  from  the  other?  Do  they  in  like  man- 
ner return,  each  to  the  source  from  which  it  has  come? 
If  so,  we  can  interpret  human  existence,  and  our  ideas 
may  still  be  in  unison  with  scientific  truth,  and  in  ac- 
cord with  our  conception  of  the  stability,  the  unchange- 
ability  of  the  universe. 

To  this  spiritual  existence  the  Saracens,  following 
Eastern  nations,  gave  the  designation  "  the  Active  Intel- 
lect." They  believed  that  the  soul  of  man  emanated 
from  it,  as  a  rain-drop  comes  from  the  sea,  and,  after  a 
season,  returns.  So  arose  among  them  the  imposing 
doctrines  of  emanation  and  absorption.  The  active  in- 
tellect is  God. 

In  one  of  its  forms,  as  we  have  seen,  this  idea  was 
developed  by  Chakia  Mouni,  in  India,  in  a  most  mas- 
terly manner,  and  embodied  in  the  vast  practical  system 
of  Buddhism;  in  another,  it  was  with  less  power  pre- 
sented among  the  Saracens  by  Averroes. 

But,  perhaps  we  ought  rather  to  say  that  Europeans 
hold  Averroes  as  the  author  of  this  doctrine,  because 
they  saw  him  isolated  from  his  antecedents.  But  Mo- 


AVERKOCISM.  139 

hammedans  gave  him  little  credit  for  originality.  He 
stood  to  them  in  the  light  of  a  commentator  on  Aris- 
totle, and  as  presenting  the  opinions  of  the  Alexandrian 
and  other  philosophical  schools  up  to  his  time.  The 
following  excerpts  from  the  "  Historical  Essay  on  Aver- 
roism,"  by  M.  Kenan,  will  show  how  closely  the  Sara- 
cenic ideas  approached  those  presented  above: 

This  system  supposes  that,  at  the  death  of  an  indi- 
vidual, his  intelligent  principle  or  soul  no  longer  pos- 
sesses a  separate  existence,  but  returns  to  or  is  absorbed 
in  the  universal  mind,  the  active  intelligence,  the  mun- 
dane soul,  which  is  God;  from  whom,  indeed,  it  had 
originally  emanated  or  issued  forth. 

The  universal,  or  active,  or  objective  intellect,  is 
uncreated,  impassible,  incorruptible,  has  neither  begin- 
ning nor  end;  nor  does  it  increase  as  the  number  of  in- 
dividual souls  increases.  It  is  altogether  separate  from 
matter.  It  is,  as  it  were,  a  cosmic  principle.  This  one- 
ness of  the  active  intellect,  or  reason,  is  the  essential 
principle  of  the  Averroistic  theory,  and  is  in  harmony 
with  the  cardinal  doctrine  of  Mohammedanism — the 
unity  of  God. 

The  individual,  or  passive,  or  subjective  intellect,  is 
an  emanation  from  the  universal,  and  constitutes  what 
is  termed  the  soul  of  man.  In  one  sense  it  is  perishable 
and  ends  with  the  body,  but  in  a  higher  sense  it  en- 
dures; for,  after  death,  it  returns  to  or  is  absorbed  in 
the  universal  soul,  and  thus  of  all  human  souls  there 
remains  at  last  but  one — the  aggregate  of  them  all. 
Life  is  not  the  property  of  the  individual,  it  belongs  to 
Nature.  The  end  of  man  is  to  enter  into  union  more 
and  more  complete  with  the  active  intellect — reason. 
In  that  the  happiness  of  the  soul  consists.  Our  des- 
tiny is  quietude.  It  was  the  opinion  of  Averroes  that 


140  AVERROISM. 

the  transition  from  the  individual  to  the  universal  is 
instantaneous  at  death,  but  the  Buddhists  maintain  that 
human  personality  continues  in  a  declining  manner  for 
a  certain  term  before  nonentity,  or  Ninvana,  is  at- 
tained. 

Philosophy  has  never  proposed  but  two  hypotheses  to 
explain  the  system  of  the  world:  first,  a  personal  God 
existing  apart,  and  a  human  soul  called  into  existence 
or  created,  and  thenceforth  immortal;  second,  an  imper- 
sonal intelligence,  or  indeterminate  God,  and  a  soul 
emerging  from  and  returning  to  him.  As  to  the  origin 
of  beings,  there  are  two  opposite  opinions:  first,  that  they 
are  created  from  nothing;  second,  that  they  come  by 
development  from  preexisting  forms.  The  theory  of 
creation  belongs  to  the  first  of  the  above  hypotheses, 
that  of  evolution  to  the  last. 

Philosophy  among  the  Arabs  thus  took  the  same 
direction  that  it  had  taken  in  China,  in  India,  and  in- 
deed throughout  the  East.  Its  whole  spirit  depended 
on  the  admission  of  the  indestructibility  of  matter  and 
force.  It  saw  an  analogy  between  the  gathering  of  the 
material  of  which  the  body  of  man  consists  from  the 
vast  store  of  matter  in  Nature,  and  its  final  restoration 
to  that  store,  and  the  emanation  of  the  spirit  of  man 
from  the  universal  Intellect,  the  Divinity,  and  its  final 
reabsorption. 

Having  thus  indicated  in  sufficient  detail  the  philo- 
sophical characteristics  of  the  doctrine  of  emanation  and 
absorption,  I  have  in  the  next  place  to  relate  its  history. 
It  was  introduced  into  Europe  by  the  Spanish  Arabs. 
Spain  was  the  focal  point  from  which,  issuing  forth,  it 
affected  the  ranks  of  intelligence  and  fashion  all  over 
Europe,  and  in  Spain  it  had  a  melancholy  end. 


ANDALUSIAN  CIVILIZATION. 

The  Spanish  khalifs  had  surrounded  themselves  with 
all  the  luxuries  of  Oriental  life.  They  had  magnificent 
palaces,  enchanting  gardens,  seraglios  filled  with  beau- 
tiful women.  Europe  at  the  present  day  does  not  offer 
more  taste,  more  refinement,  more  elegance,  than  might 
have  been  seen,  at  the  epoch  of  which  we  are  speaking, 
in  the  capitals  of  the  Spanish  Arabs.  Their  streets  were 
lighted  and  solidly  paved.  The  houses  were  frescoed 
and  carpeted;  they  were  warmed  in  winter  by  furnaces, 
and  cooled  in  summer  with  perfumed  air  brought  by 
underground  pipes  from  flower-beds.  They  had  baths, 
and  libraries,  and  dining-halls,  fountains  of  quicksilver 
and  water.  City  and  country  were  full  of  conviviality, 
and  of  dancing  to  the  lute  and  mandolin.  Instead  of  the 
drunken  and  gluttonous  wassail  orgies  of  their  North- 
ern neighbors,  the  feasts  of  the  Saracens  were  marked 
by  sobriety.  Wine  was  prohibited.  The  enchanting 
moonlight  evenings  of  Andalusia  were  spent  by  the 
Moors  in  sequestered,  fairy-like  gardens  or  in  orange- 
groves,  listening  to  the  romances  of  the  story-teller,  or 
engaged  in  philosophical  discourse;  consoling  themselves 
for  the  disappointments  of  this  life  by  such  reflections 
as  that,  if  virtue  were  rewarded  in  this  world,  we  should 
be  without  expectations  in  the  life  to  come;  and  recon- 
ciling themselves  to  their  daily  toil  by  the  expectation 
that  rest  will  be  found  after  death — a  rest  never  to  be 
succeeded  by  labor. 

In  the  tenth  century  the  Khalif  Hakem  II.  had  made 
beautiful  Andalusia  the  paradise  of  the  world.  Chris- 
tians, Mussulmen,  Jews,  mixed  together  without  re- 
straint. There,  among  many  celebrated  names  that 
have  descended  to  our  times,  was  Gerbert,  destined  sub- 
sequently to  become  pope.  There,  too,  was  Peter  the 
Venerable,  and  many  Christian  ecclesiastics.  Peter 


142  AVERROISM  IN  ANDALUSIA. 

says  that  he  found  learned  men  even  from  Britain  pur- 
suing astronomy.  All  learned  men,  no  matter  from 
what  country  they  came,  or  what  their  religious  views, 
were  welecomed.  The  khalif  had  in  his  palace  a  manu- 
factory of  books,  and  copyists,  binders,  illuminators. 
He  kept  book-buyers  in  all  the  great  cities  of  Asia  and 
Africa.  His  library  contained  four  hundred  thousand 
volumes,  superbly  bound  and  illuminated. 

Throughout  the  Mohammedan  dominions  in  Asia,  in 
Africa,  and  in  Spain,  the  lower  order  of  Mussulmen  en- 
tertained a  fanatical  hatred  against  learning.  Among 
the  more  devout — those  who  claimed  to  be  orthodox — 
there  were  painful  doubts  as  to  the  salvation  of  the 
great  Khalif  Al-Mamun — the  wicked  khalif,  as  they 
called  him — for  he  had  not  only  disturbed  the  people 
by  introducing  the  writings  of  Aristotle  and  other 
Greek  heathens,  but  had  even  struck  at  the  existence 
of  heaven  and  hell  by  saying  that  the  earth  is  a  globe, 
and  pretending  that  he  could  measure  its  size.  These 
persons,  from  their  numbers,  constituted  a  political 
power. 

Almansor,  who  usurped  the  khalifate  to  the  preju- 
dice of  Hakem's  son,  thought  that  his  usurpation  would 
be  sustained  if  he  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  ortho- 
dox party.  He  therefore  had  the  library  of  Hakem 
searched,  and  all  works  of  a  scientific  or  philosophical 
nature  carried  into  the  public  places  and  burnt,  or 
thrown  into  the  cisterns  of  the  palace.  By  a  similar 
court  revolution  Averroes,  in  his  old  age — he  died  A.  D. 
1198 — was  expelled  from  Spain;  the  religious  party 
had  triumphed  over  the  philosophical.  He  was  de- 
nounced as  a  traitor  to  religion.  An  opposition  to  phi- 
losophy had  been  organized  all  over  the  Mussulman 
world.  There  was  hardly  a  philosopher  who  was  not 


AVERKOISM  AMONG  THE  JEWS.  14.3 

punished.  Some  were  put  to  death,  and  the  conse- 
quence was,  that  Islam  was  full  of  hypocrites. 

Into  Italy,  Germany,  England,  Averroism  had  si- 
lently made  its  way.  It  found  favor  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Franciscans,  and  a  focus  in  the  University  of  Paris. 
By  very  many  of  the  leading  minds  it  had  been  ac- 
cepted. But  at  length  the  Dominicans,  the  rivals  of 
the  Franciscans,  sounded  an  alarm.  They  said  it  de- 
stroys all  personality,  conducts  to  fatalism,  and  renders 
inexplicable  the  difference  and  progress  of  individual 
intelligences.  The  declaration  that  there  is  but  one  in- 
tellect is  an  error  subversive  of  the  merits  of  the  saints, 
it  is  an  assertion  that  there  is  no  difference  among  men. 
What!  is  there  no  difference  between  the  holy  soul  of 
Peter  and  the  damned  soul  of  Judas?  are  they  identi- 
cal? Averroes  in  this  his  blasphemous  doctrine  denies 
creation,  providence,  revelation,  the  Trinity,  the  efficacy 
of  prayers,  of  alms,  and  of  litanies;  he  disbelieves  in 
the  resurrection  and  immortality;  he  places  the  sum- 
mum  bonum  in  mere  pleasure. 

So,  too,  among  the  Jews  who  were  then  the  leading 
intellects  of  the  world,  Averroism  had  been  largely  prop- 
agated. Their  great  writer  Maimonides  had  thorough- 
ly accepted  it;  his  school  was  spreading  it  in  all  direc- 
tions. A  furious  persecution  arose  on  the  part  of  the 
orthodox  Jews.  Of  Maimonides  it  had  been  formerly 
their  delight  to  declare  that  he  was  "the  Eagle  of  the 
Doctors,  the  Great  Sage,  the  Glory  of  the  West,  the 
Light  of  the  East,  second  only  to  Moses."  Now,  they 
proclaimed  that  he  had  abandoned  the  faith  of  Abra- 
ham; had  denied  the  possibility  of  creation,  believed  in 
the  eternity  of  the  world;  had  given  himself  up  to  the 
manufacture  of  atheists;  had  deprived  God  of  his  attri- 
butes; made  a  vacuum  of  him;  had  declared  him  inac- 


144  SUPPRESSION  OP  AVERROISM. 

ccssible  to  prayer,  and  a  stranger  to  the  government  of 
the  world.  The  works  of  Maimonides  were  committed 
to  the  flames  by  the  synagogues  of  Montpellier,  Barce- 
lona, and  Toledo. 

Scarcely  had  the  conquering  arms  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella  overthrown  the  Arabian  dominion  in  Spain, 
when  measures  were  taken  by  the  papacy  to  extinguish 
these  opinions,  which,  it  was  believed,  were  undermin- 
ing European  Christianity. 

Until  Innocent  IV.  (1243),  there  was  no  special  tri- 
bunal against  heretics,  distinct  from  those  of  the  bish- 
ops. The  Inquisition,  then  introduced,  in  accordance 
with  the  centralization  of  the  times,  was  a  general  and 
papal  tribunal,  which  displaced  the  old  local  ones.  The 
bishops,  therefore,  viewed  the  innovation  with  great 
dislike,  considering  it  as  an  intrusion  on  their  rights. 
It  was  established  in  Italy,  Spain,  Germany,  and  the 
southern  provinces  of  France. 

The  temporal  sovereigns  were  only  too  desirous  to 
make  use  of  this  powerful  engine  for  their  own  political 
purposes.  Against  this  the  popes  strongly  protested. 
They  were  not  willing  that  its  use  should  pass  out  of 
the  ecclesiastical  hand. 

The  Inquisition,  having  already  been  tried  in  the 
south  of  France,  had  there  proved  to  be  very  effective 
for  the  suppression  of  heresy.  It  had  been  introduced 
into  Aragon.  Now  was  assigned  to  it  the  duty  of  deal- 
ing with  the  Jews. 

In  the  old  times  under  Visigothic  rule  these  people 
had  greatly  prospered,  but  the  leniency  that  had  been 
shown  to  them  was  succeeded  by  atrocious  persecution, 
when  the  Visigoths  abandoned  their  Arianism  and  be- 
came orthodox.  The  most  inhuman  ordinances  were 
issued  against  them — a  law  was  enacted  condemning 


SUPPRESSION  OF  AVERROISM.  145 

them  all  to  be  slaves.  It  was  not  to  be  wondered  at 
that,  when  the  Saracen  invasion  took  place,  the  Jews  did 
whatever  they  could  to  promote  its  success.  They,  like 
the  Arabs,  were  an  Oriental  people,  both  traced  their 
lineage  to  Abraham,  their  common  ancestor;  both  were 
believers  in  the  unity  of  God.  It  was  their  defense  of 
that  doctrine  that  had  brought  upon  them  the  hatred  of 
their  Visigothic  masters. 

Under  the  Saracen  rule  they  were  treated  with  the 
highest  consideration.  They  became  distinguished  for 
their  wealth  and  their  learning.  For  the  most  part  they 
were  Aristotelians.  They  founded  many  schools  and 
colleges.  Their  mercantile  interests  led  them  to  travel 
all  over  the  world.  They  particularly  studied  the  science 
of  medicine.  Throughout  the  middle  ages  they  were 
the  physicians  and  bankers  of  Europe.  Of  all  men  they 
saw  the  course  of  human  affairs  from  the  most  elevated 
point  of  view.  Among  the  special  sciences  they  became 
proficient  in  mathematics  and  astronomy;  they  com- 
posed the  tables  of  Alfonso,  and  were  the  cause  of  the 
voyage  of  De  Gama.  They  distinguished  themselves 
greatly  in  light  literature.  From  the  tenth  to  the  four- 
teenth century  their  literature  was  the  first  in  Europe. 
They  were  to  be  found  in  the  courts  of  princes  as  phy- 
sicians, or  as  treasurers  managing  the  public  finances. 

The  orthodox  clergy  in  Navarre  had  excited  popular 
prejudices  against  them.  To  escape  the  persecutions 
that  arose,  many  of  them  feigned  to  turn  Christians,  and 
of  these  many  apostatized  to  their  former  faith.  The 
papal  nuncio  at  the  court  of  Castile  raised  a  cry  for  the 
establishment  of  the  Inquisition.  The  poorer  Jews  were 
accused  of  sacrificing  Christian  children  at  the  Passover, 
in  mockery  of  the  crucifixion;  the  richer  were  denounced 
as  Averroists.  Under  the  influence  of  Torquemada,  a 


THE  INQUISITION. 

Dominican  monk,  the  confessor  of  Queen  Isabella,  that 
princess  solicited  a  bull  from  the  pope  for  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Holy  Office.  A  bull  was  accordingly  issued 
in  November,  1478,  for  the  detection  and  suppression 
of  heresy.  In  the  first  year  of  the  operation  of  the  In- 
quisition, 1481,  two  thousand  victims  were  burnt  in 
Andalusia;  besides  these,  many  thousands  were  dug  up 
from  their  graves  and  burnt;  seventeen  thousand  were 
fined  or  imprisoned  for  life.  Whoever  of  the  persecuted 
race  could  flee,  escaped  for  his  life.  Torquemada,  now 
appointed  inquisitor-general  for  Castile  and  Leon,  illus- 
trated his  office  by  his  ferocity.  Anonymous  accusa- 
tions were  received,  the  accused  was  not  confronted  by 
witnesses,  torture  was  relied  upon  for  conviction;  it  was 
inflicted  in  vaults  where  no  one  could  hear  the  cries  of 
the  tormented.  As,  in  pretended  mercy,  it  was  forbid- 
den to  inflict  torture  a  second  time,  with  horrible  du- 
plicity it  was  affirmed  that  the  torment  had  not  been 
completed  at  first,  but  had  only  been  suspended  out  of 
charity  until  the  following  day!  The  families  of  the 
convicted  were  plunged  into  irretrievable  ruin.  Llo- 
rente,  the  historian  of  the  Inquisition,  computes  that 
Torquemada  and  his  collaborators,  in  the  course  of 
eighteen  years,  burnt  at  the  stake  ten  thousand  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty  persons,  six  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  sixty  in  effigy,  and  otherwise  punished  ninety-seven 
thousand  three  hundred  and  twenty-one.  This  frantic 
priest  destroyed  Hebrew  Bibles  wherever  he  could  find 
them,  and  burnt  six  thousand  volumes  of  Oriental  litera- 
ture at  Salamanca,  under  an  impiitation  that  they  incul- 
cated Judaism.  With  unutterable  disgust  and  indigna- 
tion, we  learn  that  the  papal  government  realized  much 
money  by  selling  to  the  rich  dispensations  to  secure 
them  from  the  Inquisition. 


BANISHMENT  OF  THE  JEWS.  147 

But  all  these  frightful  atrocities  proved  failures. 
The  conversions  were  few.  Torquemada,  therefore, 
insisted  on  the  immediate  banishment  of  every  unbap- 
tized  Jew.  On  March  30,  1492,  the  edict  of  expulsion 
was  signed.  All  unbaptized  Jews,  of  whatever  age,  sex, 
or  condition,  were  ordered  to  leave  the  realm  by  the 
end  of  the  following  July.  If  they  revisited  it,  they 
should  suffer  death.  They  might  sell  their  effects  and 
take  the  proceeds  in  merchandise  or  bills  of  exchange, 
but  not  in  gold  or  silver.  Exiled  thus  suddenly  from 
the  land  of  their  birth,  the  land  of  their  ancestors  for 
hundreds  of  years,  they  could  not  in  the  glutted  market 
that  arose  sell  what  they  possessed.  Nobody  would 
purchase  what  could  be  got  for  nothing  after  July. 
The  Spanish  clergy  occupied  themselves  by  preaching 
in  the  public  squares  sermons  filled  with  denunciations 
against  their  victims,  who,  when  the  time  for  expatria- 
tion came,  swarmed  in  the  roads  and  filled  the  air  with 
their  cries  of  despair.  Even  the  Spanish  onlookers 
wept  at  the  scene  of  agony.  Torquemada,  however;  en- 
forced the  ordinance  that  no  one  should  afford  them 
any  help. 

Of  the  banished  persons  some  made  their  way  into 
Africa,  some  into  Italy;  the  latter  carried  with  them 
to  Naples  ship-fever,  which  destroyed  not  fewer  than 
twenty  thousand  in  that  city,  and  devastated  that  penin- 
sula; some  reached  Turkey,  a  few  England.  Thou- 
sands, especially  mothers  with  nursing  children,  infants, 
and  old  people,  died  by  the  way;  many  of  them  in  the 
agonies  of  thirst. 

This  action  against  the  Jews  was  soon  followed  by 
one  against  the  Moors.  A  pragmatica  was  issued  at 
Seville,  February,  1502,  setting  forth  the  obligations  of 
the  Castilians  to  drive  the  enemies  of  God  from  the 


148  EXPULSION  OP  THE  MOORS. 

land,  and  ordering  that  all  unbaptized  Moors  in  the 
kingdoms  of  Castile  and  Leon  above  the  age  of  infancy 
should  leave  the  country  by  the  end  of  April.  They 
might  sell  their  property,  but  not  take  away  any  gold 
or  silver;  they  were  forbidden  to  emigrate  to  the  Mo- 
hammedan dominions;  the  penalty  of  disobedience  was 
death.  Their  condition  was  thus  worse  than  that  of 
the  Jews,  who  had  been  permitted  to  go  where  they 
chose.  Such  was  the  fiendish  intolerance  of  the  Span- 
iards, that  they  asserted  the  government  would  be  justi- 
fied in  taking  the  lives  of  all  the  Moors  for  their  shame- 
less infidelity. 

What  an  ungrateful  return  for  the  toleration  that 
the  Moors  in  their  day  of  power  had  given  to  the  Chris- 
tians! No  faith  was  kept  with  the  victims.  Granada 
had  surrendered  under  the  solemn  guarantee  of  the  full 
enjoyment  of  civil  and  religious  liberty.  At  the  insti- 
gation of  Cardinal  Ximenes  that  pledge  was  broken,  and, 
after  a  residence  of  eight  centuries,  the  Mohammedans 
were  driven  out  of  the  land. 

The  coexistence  of  three  religions  in  Andalusia — the 
Christian,  the  Mohammedan,  the  Mosaic — had  given 
opportunity  for  the  development  of  Averroism  or  philo- 
sophical Arabism.  This  was  a  repetition  of  what  had 
occurred  at  Rome,  when  the  gods  of  all  the  conquered 
countries  were  confronted  in  that  capital,  and  universal 
disbelief  in  them  all  ensued.  Averroes  himself  was  ac- 
cused of  having  been  first  a  Mussulman,  then  a  Chris- 
tian, then  a  Jew,  and  finally  a  misbeliever.  It  was 
affirmed  that  he  was  the  author  of  the  mysterious  book 
"De  Tribus  Impostoribus." 

In  the  middle  ages  there  were  two  celebrated  hereti- 
cal books,  "The  Everlasting  Gospel,"  and  the  "De 


AVEEROISM  IN  EUROPE.  149 

Tribus  Impostoribus."  The  latter  was  variously  im- 
puted to  Pope  Gerbert,  to  Frederick  II.,  and  to  Averroes. 
In  their  unrelenting  hatred  the  Dominicans  fastened  all 
the  blasphemies  current  in  those  times  on  Averroes; 
they  never  tired  of  recalling  the  celebrated  and  out- 
rageous one  respecting  the  eucharist.  His  writings  had 
first  been  generally  made  known  to  Christian  Europe 
by  the  translation  of  Michael  Scot  in  the  beginning  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  but  long  before  his  time  the 
literature  of  the  West,  like  that  of  Asia,  was  full  of  these 
ideas.  We  have  seen  how  broadly  they  were  set  forth 
by  Erigena.  The  Arabians,  from  their  first  cultivation 
of  philosophy,  had  been  infected  by  them;  they  were 
current  in  all  the  colleges  of  the  three  khalifates. 
Considered  not  as  a  mode  of  thought,  that  will  sponta- 
neously occur  to  all  men  at  a  certain  stage  of  intellectual 
development,  but  as  having  originated  with  Aristotle, 
they  continually  found  favor  with  men  of  the  highest 
culture.  We  see  them  in  Eobert  Grostete,  in  Eoger 
Bacon,  and  eventually,  in  Spinoza.  Averroes  was  not 
their  inventor,  he  merely  gave  them  clearness  and  ex- 
pression. Among  the  Jews  of  the  thirteenth  century, 
he  had  completely  supplanted  his  imputed  master.  Aris- 
totle had  passed  away  from  their  eyes;  his  great  com- 
mentator, Averroes,  stood  in  his  place.  So  numerous 
were  the  converts  to  the  doctrine  of  emanation  in  Chris- 
tendom, that  Pope  Alexander  IV.  (1355)  found  it  neces- 
sary to  interfere.  By  his  order,  Albertus  Magnus  com- 
posed a  work  against  the  "Unity  of  the  Intellect." 
Treating  of  the  origin  and  nature  of  the  soul,  he  at- 
tempted to  prove  that  the  theory  of  "a  separate  intellect, 
enlightening  man  by  irradiation  anterior  to  the  individ- 
ual and  surviving  the  individual,  is  a  detestable  error." 

But  the  most  illustrious  antagonist  of  the  great  com- 
12 


150  ST.   THOMAS  COMBATS  AVEHROISM. 

mentator  was  St.  Thomas  Aquinas,  the  destroyer  of  all 
such  heresies  as  the  unity  of  the  intellect,  the  denial  of 
Providence,  the  impossibility  of  creation;  the  victories 
of  "  the  Angelic  Doctor  "  were  celebrated  not  only  in 
the  disputations  of  the  Dominicans,  but  also  in  the 
works  of  art  of  the  painters  of  Florence  and  Pisa.  The 
indignation  of  that  saint  knew  no  bounds  when  Chris- 
tians became  the  disciples  of  an  infidel,  who  was  worse 
than  a  Mohammedan.  The  wrath  of  the  Dominicans, 
the  order  to  which  St.  Thomas  belonged,  was  sharpened 
by  the  fact  that  their  rivals,  the  Franciscans,  inclined 
to  Averroistic  views;  and  Dante,  who  leaned  to  the 
Dominicans,  denounced  Averroes  as  the  author  of  a 
most  dangerous  system.  The  theological  odium  of  all 
three  dominant  religions  was  put  upon  him;  he  was 
pointed  out  as  the  originator  of  the  atrocious  maxim 
that  "  all  religions  are  false,  although  all  are  proba- 
bly useful."  An  attempt  was  made  at  the  Council 
of  Vienne  to  have  his  writings  absolutely  suppressed, 
and  to  forbid  all  Christians  reading  them.  The  Do- 
minicans, armed  with  the  weapons  of  the  Inquisition, 
terrified  Christian  Europe  with  their  unrelenting  perse- 
cutions. They  imputed  all  the  infidelity  of  the  times 
to  the  Arabian  philosopher.  But  he  was  not  without 
support.  In  Paris  and  in  the  cities  of  Northern  Italy 
the  Franciscans  sustained  his  views,  and  all  Christendom 
was  agitated  with  these  disputes. 

Under  the  inspiration  of  the  Dominicans,  Averroes 
became  to  the  Italian  painters  the  emblem  of  unbelief. 
Many  of  the  Italian  towns  had  pictures  or  frescoes  of 
the  Day  of  Judgment  and  of  Hell.  In  these  Averroes 
not  unfrequently  appears.  Thus,  in  one  at  Pisa,  he 
figures  with  Arius,  Mohammed,  and  Antichrist.  In 
another  he  is  represented  as  overthrown  by  St.  Thomas. 


AVERROISM  ANATHEMATIZED.  151 

He  had  become  an  essential  element  in  the  triumphs  of 
the  great  Dominican  doctor.  He  continued  thus  to  be 
familiar  to  the  Italian  painters  until  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury. His  doctrines  were  maintained  in  the  University 
of  Padua  until  the  seventeenth. 

Such  is,  in  brief,  the  history  of  Averroism  as  it  in- 
vaded Europe  from  Spain.  Under  the  auspices  of  Fred- 
erick II.,  it,  in  a  less  imposing  manner,  issued  from 
Sicily.  That  sovereign  had  adopted  it  fully.  In  his 
"  Sicilian  Questions "  he  had  demanded  light  on  the 
eternity  of  the  world,  and  on  the  nature  of  the  soul, 
and  supposed  he  had  found  it  in  the  replies  of  Ibn  Sabin, 
an  upholder  of  these  doctrines.  But  in  his  conflict  with 
the  papacy  he  was  overthrown,  and  with  him  these 
heresies  were  destroyed. 

In  Upper  Italy,  Averroism  long  maintained  its 
ground.  It  was  so  fashionable  in  high  Venetian  so- 
ciety that  every  gentleman  felt  constrained  to  profess 
it.  At  length  the  Church  took  decisive  action  against 
it.  The  Lateran  Council,  A.  D.  1512,  condemned  the 
abettors  of  these  detestable  doctrines  to  be  held  as  here- 
tics and  infidels.  As  we  have  seen,  the  late  Vatican 
Council  has  anathematized  them.  Notwithstanding 
that  stigma,  it  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  these  opin- 
ions are  held  to  be  true  by  a  majority  of  the  human 
race. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

CONFLICT   RESPECTING  THE  NATURE   OP  THE   WORLD. 

Scriptural  view  of  the  world:  The  earth  a  flat  surface;  location 
of  heaven  and  hell. 

Scientific  view :  The  earth  a  globe  ;  its  size  determined  ;  its  posi- 
tion in  and  relations  to  the  solar  system. — The  three  great 
voyages.— Columbus,  De  Gama,  Magellan. — Circumnavigation 
of  the  earth. — Determination  of  its  curvature  by  the  measure- 
ment of  a  degree  and  by  the  pendulum. 

The  discoveries  of  Copernicus. — Invention  of  the  telescope. — 
Galileo  brought  before  the  Inquisition. — His  punishment. — 
Victory  over  the  Church. 

Attempts  to  ascertain  the  dimensions  of  the  solar  system. — Deter- 
mination of  the  sun's  parallax  by  the  transits  of  Venus. — 
Insignificance  of  the  earth  and  man. 

Ideas  respecting  the  dimensions  of  the  universe. — Parallax  of  the 
stars. — The  plurality  of  worlds  asserted  by  Bruno. — lie  is 
seized  and  murdered  by  the  Inquisition. 

I  HAVE  now  to  present  the  discussions  that  arose 
respecting  the  third  great  philosophical  problem — the 
nature  of  the  world. 

An  uncritical  observation  of  the  aspect  of  Nature 
persuades  us  that  the  earth  is  an  extended  level  surface 
which  sustains  the  dome  of  the  sky,  a  firmament  divid- 
ing the  waters  above  from  the  waters  beneath;  that  the 
heavenly  bodies — the  sun,  the  moon,  the  stars — pursue 
their  way,  moving  from  east  to  west,  their  insignificant 
size  and  motion  round  the  motionless  earth  proclaiming 

152 


THEOLOGICAL  VIEW  OF  THE  EARTH.         153 

their  inferiority.  Of  the  various  organic  forms  sur- 
rounding man  none  rival  him  in  dignity,  and  hence  he 
seems  justified  in  concluding  that  every  thing  has  been 
created  for  his  use — the  sun  for  the  purpose  of  giving 
him  light  by  day,  the  moon  and  stars  by  night. 

Comparative  theology  shows  us  that  this  is  the  con- 
ception of  Nature  universally  adopted  in  the  early  phase 
of  intellectual  life.  It  is  the  belief  of  all  nations  in  all 
parts  of  the  world  in  the  beginning  of  their  civilization: 
geocentric,  for  it  makes  the  earth  the  centre  of  the  uni- 
verse; anthropocentric,  for  it  makes  man  the  central 
object  of  the  earth.  And  not  only  is  this  the  conclusion 
spontaneously  come  to  from  inconsiderate  glimpses  of 
the  world,  it  is  "also  the  philosophical  basis  of  various 
religious  revelations,  vouchsafed  to  man  from  time  to 
time.  These  revelations,  moreover,  declare  to  him  that 
above  the  crystalline  dome  of  the  sky  is  a  region  of 
eternal  light  and  happiness — heaven — the  abode  of  God 
and  the  angelic  hosts,  perhaps  also  his  own  abode  after 
death;  and  beneath  the  earth  a  region  of  eternal  dark- 
ness and  misery,  the  habitation  of  those  that  are  evil. 
In  the  visible  world  is  thus  seen  a  picture  of  the  in- 
visible. 

On  the  basis  of  this  view  of  the  structure  of  the 
world  great  religious  systems  have  been  founded,  and 
hence  powerful  material  interests  have  been  engaged 
in  its  support.  These  have  resisted,  sometimes  by  re- 
sorting to  bloodshed,  attempts  that  have  been  made  to 
correct  its  incontestable  errors — a  resistance  grounded 
on  the  suspicion  that  the  localization  of  heaven  and  hell 
and  the  supreme  value  of  man  in  the  universe  might  be 
affected. 

That  such  attempts  would  be  made  was  inevitable. 
As  soon  as  men  began  to  reason  on  the  subject  at  all, 


THEORY  OP  COSMAS  INDICOPLEUSTES. 

they  could  not  fail  to  discredit  the  assertion  that  the 
earth  is  an  indefinite  plane.  No  one  can  doubt  that  the 
sun  we  see  to-day  is  the  self-same  sun  that  we  saw  yes- 
terday. His  reappearance  each  morning  irresistibly  sug- 
gests that  he  lias  passed  on  the  underside  of  the  earth. 
But  this  is  incompatible  with  the  reign  of  night  in  those 
regions.  It  presents  more  or  less  distinctly  the  idea  of 
the  globular  form  of  the  earth. 

The  earth  cannot  extend  indefinitely  downward;  for 
the  sun  cannot  go  through  it,  nor  through  any  crevice 
or  passage  in  it,  since  he  rises  and  sets  in  different  posi- 
tions at  different  seasons  of  the  year.  The  stars  also 
move  under  it  in  countless  courses.  There  must,  there- 
fore, be  a  clear  way  beneath. 

To  reconcile  revelation  with  these  innovating  facts, 
schemes,  such  as  that  of  Cosmas  Indicopleustes  in  his 
"  Christian  Topography,"  were  doubtless  often  adopted. 
To  this  in  particular  we  have  had  occasion  on  a  former 
page  to  refer.  It  asserted  that  in  the  northern  parts  of 
the  flat  earth  there  is  an  immense  mountain,  behind 
which  the  sun  passes,  and  thus  produces  night. 

At  a  very  remote  historical  period  the  mechanism 
of  eclipses  had  been  discovered.  Those  of  the  moon 
demonstrated  that  the  shadow  of  the  earth  is  always  cir- 
cular. The  form  of  the  earth  must  therefore  be  globu- 
lar. A  body  which  in  all  positions  casts  a  circular 
shadow  must  itself  be  spherical.  Other  considerations, 
with  which  every  one  is  now  familiar,  could  not  fail  to 
establish  that  such  is  her  figure. 

But  the  determination  of  the  shape  of  the  earth  by 
no  means  deposed  her  from  her  position  of  superiority. 
Apparently  vastly  larger  than  all  other  things,  it  was 
fitting  that  she  should  be  considered  not  merely  as  the 
centre  of  the  world,  but,  in  truth,  as — the  world.  All 


ANCIENT  MEASURES  OF  THE  EARTH'S  SIZE.  155 

other  objects  in  their  aggregate  seemed  utterty  unim- 
portant in  comparison  with  her. 

Though  the  consequences  flowing  from  an  admission 
of  the  globular  figure  of  the  earth  affected  very  pro- 
foundly existing  theological  ideas,  they  were  of  much 
less  moment  than  those  depending  on  a  determina- 
tion of  her  size.  It  needed  but  an  elementary  knowl- 
edge of  geometry  to  perceive  that  correct  ideas  on  this 
point  could  be  readily  obtained  by  measuring  a  degree 
on  her  surface.  Probably  there  were  early  attempts  to 
accomplish  this  object,  the  results  of  which  have  been 
lost.  But  Erastosthenes  executed  one  between  Syene 
and  Alexandria,  in  Egypt,  Syene  being  supposed  to  be 
exactly  under  the  tropic  of  Cancer.  The  two  places 
are,  however,  not  on  the  same  meridian,  and  the  dis- 
tance between  them  was  estimated,  not  measured.  Two 
centuries  later,  Posidonius  made  another  attempt  be- 
tween Alexandria  and  Ehodes;  the  bright  star  Canopus 
just  grazed  the  horizon  at  the  latter  place,  at  Alexandria 
it  rose  7£°.  In  this  instance,  also,  since  the  direction 
lay  across  the  sea,  the  distance  was  estimated,  not  meas- 
ured. Finally,  as  we  have  already  related,  the  Khalif 
Al-Mamun  made  two  sets  of  measures,  one  on  the  shore 
of  the  Eed  Sea,  the  other  near  Cufa,  in  Mesopotamia. 
The  general  result  of  these  various  observations  gave  for 
the  earth's  diameter  between  seven  and  eight  thousand 
miles. 

This  approximate  determination  of  the  size  of  the 
earth  tended  to  depose  her  from  her  dominating  posi- 
tion, and  gave  rise  to  very  serious  theological  results.  In 
this  the  ancient  investigations  of  Aristarchus  of  Samos, 
one  of  the  Alexandrian  school,  280  B.  c.,  powerfully 
aided.  In  his  treatise  on  the  magnitudes  and  distances 
of  the  sun  and  moon,  he  explains  the  ingenious  though 


156  THE  PYTHAGOREAN  SYSTEM. 

imperfect  method  to  which  he  had  resorted  for  the  solu- 
tion of  that  problem.  Many  ages  previously  a  specula- 
tion had  been  brought  from  India  to  Europe  by  Pythago- 
ras. It  presented  the  sun  as  the  centre  of  the  system. 
Around  him  the  planets  revolved  in  circular  orbits,  their 
order  of  position  being  Mercury,  Venus,  Earth,  Mars, 
Jupiter,  Saturn,  each  of  them  being  supposed  to  rotate 
on  its  axis  as  it  revolved  round  the  sun.  According  to 
Cicero,  Nicetas  suggested  that,  if  it  were  admitted  that 
the  earth  revolves  on  her  axis,  the  difficulty  presented 
by  the  inconceivable  velocity  of  the  heavens  would  be 
avoided. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  works  of  Aris- 
tarchus,  in  the  Alexandrian  Library,  were  burnt  at  the 
time  of  the  fire  of  Caesar.  The  only  treatise  of  his  that 
has  come  down  to  us  is  that  above  mentioned,  on  the 
size  and  distance  of  the  sun  and  moon. 

Aristarchus  adopted  the  Pythagorean  system  as  rep- 
resenting the  actual  facts.  This  was  the  result  of  a  rec- 
ognition of  the  sun's  amazing  distance,  and  therefore  of 
his  enormous  size.  The  heliocentric  system,  thus  re- 
garding the  sun  as  the  central  orb,  degraded  the  earth 
to  a  very  subordinate  rank,  making  her  only  one  of  a 
company  of  six  revolving  bodies. 

But  this  is  not  the  only  contribution  conferred  on 
astronomy  by  Aristarchus,  for,  considering  that  the 
movement  of  the  earth  does  not  sensibly  affect  the  ap- 
parent position  of  the  stars,  he  inferred  that  they  are 
incomparably  more  distant  from  us  than  the  sun.  He, 
therefore,  of  all  the  ancients,  as  Laplace  remarks,  had 
the  most  correct  ideas  of  the  grandeur  of  the  universe. 
He  saw  that  the  earth  is  of  absolutely  insignificant  size, 
when  compared  with  the  stellar  distances.  He  saw,  too, 
that  there  is  nothing  above  us  but  space  and  stars. 


THE  PTOLEMAIC  SYSTEM.  157 

But  the  views  of  Aristarchus,  as  respects  the  em- 
placement of  the  planetary  bodies,  were  not  accepted 
by  antiquity;  the  system  proposed  by  Ptolemy,  and  in- 
corporated in  his  "  Syntaxis,"  was  universally  preferred. 
The  physical  philosophy  of  those  times  was  very  im- 
perfect— one  of  Ptolemy's  objections  to  the  Pytha- 
gorean system  being  that,  if  the  earth  were  in  motion, 
it  would  leave  the  air  and  other  light  bodies  behind  it. 
He  therefore  placed  the  earth  in  the  central  position, 
and  in  succession  revolved  round  her  the  Moon,  Mer- 
cury, Venus,  the  Sun,  Mars,  Jupiter,  Saturn;  beyond 
the  orbit  of  Saturn  came  the  firmament  of  the  fixed 
stars.  As  to  the  solid  crystalline  spheres,  one  moving 
from  east  to  west,  the  other  from  north  to  south,  these 
were  a  fancy  of  Eudoxus,  to  which  Ptolemy  does  not 
allude. 

The  Ptolemaic  system  is,  therefore,  essentially  a 
geocentric  system.  It  left  the  earth  in  her  position  of 
superiority,  and  hence  gave  no  cause  of  umbrage  to  re- 
ligious opinions,  Christian  or  Mohammedan.  The  im- 
mense reputation  of  its  author,  the  signal  ability  of  his 
great  work  on  the  mechanism  of  the  heavens,  sustained 
it  for  almost  fourteen  hundred  years — that  is,  from  the 
second  to  the  sixteenth  century. 

In  Christendom,  the  greater  part  of  this  long  period 
was  consumed  in  disputes  respecting  the  nature  of  God, 
and  in  struggles  for  ecclesiastical  power.  The  author- 
ity of  the  Fathers,  and  the  prevailing  belief  that  the 
Scriptures  contain  the  sum  of  all  knowledge,  discour- 
aged any  investigation  of  Nature.  If  by  chance  a  pass- 
ing interest  was  taken  in  some  astronomical  question,  it 
was  at  once  settled  by  a  reference  to  such  authorities  as 
the  writings  of  Augustine  or  Lactantius,  not  by  an  ap- 
peal to  the  phenomena  of  the  heavens.  So  great  was 


158    SARACEN  INVENTIONS  AND  DISCOVERIES. 

the  preference  given  to  sacred  over  profane  learning, 
that  Christianity  had  been  in  existence  fifteen  hundred 
years,  and  had  not  produced  a  single  astronomer. 

The  Mohammedan  nations  did  much  better.  Their 
cultivation  of  science  dates  from  the  capture  of  Alexan- 
dria, A.  D.  638.  This  was  only  six  years  after  the  death 
of  the  Prophet.  In  less  than  two  centuries  they  had 
not  only  become  acquainted  with,  but  correctly  appreci- 
ated, the  Greek  scientific  writers.  As  we  have  already 
mentioned,  by  his  treaty  with  Michael  III.,  the  Khalif 
Al-Mamun  had  obtained  a  copy  of  the  "  Syntaxis  "  of 
Ptolemy.  He  had  it  forthwith  translated  into  Arabic. 
It  became  at  once  the  great  authority  of  Saracen  astron- 
omy. From  this  basis  the  Saracens  had  advanced  to  the 
solution  of  some  of  the  most  important  scientific  prob- 
lems. They  had  ascertained  the  dimensions  of  the  earth; 
they  had  registered  or  catalogued  all  the  stars  visible  in 
their  heavens,  giving  to  those  of  the  larger  magnitudes 
the  names  they  still  bear  on  our  maps  and  globes;  they 
determined  the  true  length  of  the  year,  discovered  as- 
tronomical refraction,  invented  the  pendulum-clock, 
improved  the  photometry  of  the  stars,  ascertained  the 
curvilinear  path  of  a  ray  of  light  through  the  air,  ex- 
plained the  phenomena  of  the  horizontal  sun  and  moon, 
and  why  we  see  those  bodies  before  they  have  risen  and 
after  they  have  set;  measured  the  height  of  the  atmos- 
phere, determining  it  to  be  fifty-eight  miles;  given  the 
true  theory  of  the  twilight,  and  of  the  twinkling  of  the 
stars.  They  had  built  the  first  observatory  in  Europe. 
So  accurate  were  they  in  their  observations,  that  the 
ablest  modern  mathematicians  have  made  use  of  their 
results.  Thus  Laplace,  in  his  "  Systeme  du  Monde," 
adduces  the  observations  of  Al-Batagni  as  affording  in- 
contestable proof  of  the  diminution  of  the  eccentricity 


THE  THREE  GREAT  VOYAGES.       159 

of  the  earth's  orbit.  He  uses  those  of  Ibn-Junis  in  his 
discussion  of  the  obliquity  of  the  ecliptic,  and  also  in 
the  case  of  the  problems  of  the  greater  inequalities  of 
Jupiter  and  Saturn. 

These  represent  but  a  part,  and  indeed  but  a  small 
part,  of  the  services  rendered  by  the  Arabian  astrono- 
mers, in  the  solution  of  the  problem  of  the  nature  of 
the  world.  Meanwhile,  such  was  the  benighted  con- 
dition of  Christendom,  such  its  deplorable  ignorance/ 
that  it  cared  nothing  about  the  matter.  Its  attention 
was  engrossed  by  image-worship,  transubstantiation,  the 
merits  of  the  saints,  miracles,  shrine-cures. 

This  indifference  continued  until  the  close  of  the 
fifteenth  century.  Even  then  there  was  no  scientific 
inducement.  The  inciting  motives  were  altogether  of  a 
different  kind.  They  originated  in  commercial  rival- 
ries, and  the  question  of  the  shape  of  the  earth  was 
finally  settled  by  three  sailors,  Columbus,  De  Gama, 
and,  above  all,  by  Ferdinand  Magellan. 

The  trade  of  Eastern  Asia  has  always  been  a  source 
of  immense  wealth  to  the  Western  nations  who  in  suc- 
cession have  obtained  it.  In  the  middle  ages  it  had 
centred  in  Upper  Italy.  It  was  conducted  along  two 
lines — a  northern,  by  way  of  the  Black  and  Caspian  Seas, 
and  camel-caravans  beyond — the  headquarters  of  this 
were  at  Genoa;  and  a  southern,  through  the  Syrian  and 
Egyptian  ports,  and  by  the  Arabian  Sea,  the  headquar- 
ters of  this  being  at  Venice.  The  merchants  engaged 
in  the  latter  traffic  had  also  made  great  gains  in  the 
transport  service  of  the  Crusade-wars. 

The  Venetians  had  managed  to  maintain  amicable 
relations  with  the  Mohammedan  powers  of  Syria  and 
Egypt;  they  were  permitted  to  have  consulates  at  Alex- 
andria and  Damascus,  and,  notwithstanding  the  military 


ICO  Till-:  VOYAGE  OP  COLUMBUS. 

commotions  of  which  those  countries  had  been  the  scene, 
the  trade  was  still  maintained  in  a  comparatively  flour- 
ishing condition.  But  the  northern  or  Genoese  line  had 
been  completely  broken  up  by  the  irruptions  of  the 
Tartars  and  the  Turks,  and  the  military  and  political 
disturbances  of  the  countries  through  which  it  passed. 
The  Eastern  trade  of  Genoa  was  not  merely  in  a  precari- 
ous condition — it  was  on  the  brink  of  destruction. 

The  circular  visible  horizon  and  its  dip  at  sea,  the 
gradual  appearance  and  disappearance  of  ships  in  the 
offing,  cannot  fail  to  incline  intelligent  sailors  to  a  be- 
lief in  the  globular  figure  of  the  earth.  The  writings 
of  the  Mohammedan  astronomers  and  philosophers  had 
given  currency  to  that  doctrine  throughout  Western 
Europe,  but,  as  might  be  expected,  it  was  received  with 
disfavor  by  theologians.  When  Genoa  was  thus  on  the 
very  brink  of  ruin,  it  occurred  to  some  of  her  mariners 
that,  if  this  veiw  were  correct,  her  affairs  might  be  re- 
established. A  ship  sailing  through  the  straits  of  Gi- 
braltar westward,  across  the  Atlantic,  would  not  fail  to 
reach  the  East  Indies.  There  were  apparently  other 
great  advantages.  Heavy  cargoes  might  be  transported 
without  tedious  and  expensive  land-carriage,  and  with- 
out breaking  bulk. 

Among  the  Genoese  sailors  who  entertained  these 
views  was  Christopher  Columbus. 

He  tells  us  that  his  attention  was  drawn  to  this  sub- 
ject by  the  writings  of  Averroes,  but  among  his  friends 
he  numbered  Toscanelli,  a  Florentine,  who  had  turned 
his  attention  to  astronomy,  and  had  become  a  strong 
advocate  of  the  globular  form.  In  Genoa  itself  Colum- 
bus met  with  but  little  encouragement.  He  then  spent 
many  years  in  trying  to  interest  different  princes  in  his 
proposed  attempt.  Its  irreligious  tendency  was  pointed 


DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA.  1G1 

out  by  the  Spanish  ecclesiastics,  and  condemned  by  the 
Council  of  Salamanca;  its  orthodoxy  was  confuted  from 
the  Pentateuch,  the  Psalms,  the  Prophecies,  the  Gos- 
pels, the  Epistles,  and  the  writings  of  the  Fathers — St. 
Chrysostom,  St.  Augustine,  St.  Jerome,  St.  Gregory, 
St.  Basil,  St.  Ambrose. 

At  length,  however,  encouraged  by  the  Spanish 
Queen  Isabella,  and  substantially  aided  by  a  wealthy 
seafaring  family,  the  Pinzons  of  Palos,  some  of  whom 
joined  him  personally,  he  sailed  on  August  3,  1492, 
with  three  small  ships,  from  Palos,  carrying  with  him  a 
letter  from  King  Ferdinand  to  the  Grand-Khan  of  Tar- 
tary,  and  also  a  chart,  or  map,  constructed  on  the  basis 
of  that  of  Toscanelli.  A  little  before  midnight,  October 
11,  1492,  he  saw  from  the  forecastle  of  his  ship  a  mov- 
ing light  at  a  distance.  Two  hours  subsequently  a  sig- 
nal-gun from  another  of  the  ships  announced  that  they 
had  descried  land.  At  sunrise  Columbus  landed  in  the 
New  World. 

On  his  return  to  Europe  it  was  universally  supposed 
that  he  had  reached  the  eastern  parts  of  Asia,  and  that 
therefore  his  voyage  had  been  theoretically  successful. 
Columbus  himself  died  in  that  belief.  But  numerous 
voyages  which  were  soon  undertaken  made  known  the 
general  contour  of  the  American  coast-line,  and  the 
discovery  of  the  Great  South  Sea  by  Balboa  revealed  at 
length  the  true  facts  of  the  case,  and  the  mistake  into 
which  both  Toscanelli  and  Columbus  had  fallen,  that  in 
a  voyage  to  the  West  the  distance  from  Europe  to  Asia 
could  not  exceed  the  distance  passed  over  in  a  voyage 
from  Italy  to  the  Gulf  of  Guinea — a  voyage  that  Colum- 
bus had  repeatedly  made. 

In  his  first  voyage,  at  nightfall  on  September  13, 
1492,  being  then  two  and  a  half  degrees  east  of  Corvo, 


162  TUB  VOYAGE  OP  DE  OAMA. 

one  of  the  Azores,  Columbus  observed  that  the  compass- 
needles  of  the  ships  no  longer  pointed  a  little  to  the  east 
of  north,  but  were  varying  to  the  west.  The  deviation 
became  more  and  more  marked  as  the  expedition  ad- 
vanced, lie  was  not  the  lirst  to  detect  the  fact  of 
variation,  but  he  was  incontestably  the  first  to  discover 
the  line  of  no  variation.  On  the  return-voyage  the 
reverse  was  observed;  thea  variation  westward  dimin- 
ished until  the  meridian  in  question  was  reached,  when 
the  needles  again  pointed  due  north.  Thence,  as  the 
coast  of  Europe  was  approached,  the  variation  was  to 
the  east.  Columbus,  therefore,  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  line  of  no  variation  was  a  fixed  geographknl 
line,  or  boundary,  between  the  Eastern  and  Western 
Hemispheres.  In  the  bull  of  May,  1493,  Pope  Alexander 
VI.  accordingly  adopted  this  line  as  the  perpetual  boun- 
dary between  the  possessions  of  Spain  and  Portugal,  in 
his  settlement  of  the  disputes  of  those  nations.  Subse- 
quently, however,  it  was  discovered  that  the  line  was 
moving  eastward.  It  coincided  with  the  meridian  of 
London  in  1662. 

By  the  papal  bull  the  Portuguese  possessions  were 
limited  to  the  east  of  the  line  of  no  variation.  Informa- 
tion derived  from  certain  Egyptian  Jews  had  reached 
that  government,  that  it  was  possible  to  sail  round  the 
continent  of  Africa,  there  being  at  its  extreme  south  a 
cape  which  could  be  easily  doubled.  An  expedition  of 
three  ships  under  Vasco  de  Gama  set  sail,  July  9,  1497; 
it  doubled  the  cape  on  November  20th,  and  reached 
Calicut,  on  the  coast  of  India,  May  19,  1498.  Under  the 
bull,  this  voyage  to  the  East  gave  to  the  Portuguese  the 
right  to  the  India  trade. 

Until  the  cape  was  doubled,  the  course  of  De  Gama's 
ships  was  in  a  general  manner  southward.  Very  soon, 


THE  DOUBLING  OF  THE  CAPE.  163 

it  was  noticed  that  the  elevation  of  the  pole-star  above 
the  horizon  was  diminishing,  and,  soon  after  the  equator 
was  reached,  that  star  had  ceased  to  be  visible.  Mean- 
time other  stars,  some  of  them  forming  magnificent 
constellations,  had  come  into  view — the  stars  of  the 
Southern  Hemisphere.  All  this  was  in  conformity  to 
theoretical  expectations  founded  on  the  admission  of  the 
globular  form  of  the  earth. 

The  political  consequences  that  at  once  ensued  placed 
the  Papal  Government  in  a  position  of  great  embarrass- 
ment. Its  traditions  and  policy  forbade  it  to  admit 
any  other  than  the  flat  figure  of  the  earth,  as  revealed 
in  the  Scriptures.  Concealment  of  the  facts  was  im- 
possible, sophistry  was  unavailing.  Commercial  pros- 
perity now  left  Venice  as  well  as  Genoa.  The  front  of 
Europe  was  changed.  Maritime  power  had  departed 
from  the  Mediterranean  countries,  and  passed  to  those 
upon  the  Atlantic  coast. 

But  the  Spanish  Government  did  not  submit  to  the 
advantage  thus  gained  by  its  commercial  rival  without 
an  effort.  It  listened  to  the  representations  of  one 
Ferdinand  Magellan,  that  India  and  the  Spice  Islands 
could  be  readied  by  sailing  to  the  west,  if  only  a  strait 
or  passage  through  what  had  now  been  recognized  as 
"  the  American  Continent "  could  be  discovered;  and,  if 
this  should  be  accomplished,  Spain,  under  the  papal 
bull,  would  have  as  good  a  right  to  the  India  trade  as 
Portugal.  Under  the  command  of  Magellan,  an  ex- 
pedition of  five  ships,  carrying  two  hundred  and  thirty- 
seven  men,  was  dispatched  from  Seville,  August  10, 
1519. 

Magellan  at  once  struck  boldly  for  the  South  Amer- 
ican coast,  hoping  to  find  some  cleft  or  passage  through 
the  continent  by  which  he  might  reach  the  great  South 


164       THE  VOYAGE  OF  MAGELLAN. 

Sea.  For  seventy  days  he  was  becalmed  on  the  line; 
his  sailors  were  appalled  by  the  apprehension  that  they 
had  drifted  into  a  region  where  the  winds  never  blew, 
and  that  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  escape.  Calms, 
tempests,  mutiny,  desertion,  could  not  shake  his  resolu- 
tion. After  more  than  a  year  he  discovered  the  strait 
which  now  bears  his  name,  and,  as  Pigafetti,  an  Italian, 
who  was  with  him,  relates,  he  shed  tears  of  joy  when  he 
found  that  it  had  pleased  God  at  length  to  bring  him 
where  he  might  grapple  with  the  unknown  dangers  of 
the  South  Sea,  "  the  Great  and  Pacific  Ocean." 

Driven  by  famine  to  eat  scraps  of  skin  and  leather 
with  which  his  rigging  was  here  and  there  bound,  to 
drink  water  that  had  gone  putrid,  his  crew  dying  of 
hunger  and  scurvy,  this  man,  firm  in  his  belief  of  the 
globular  figure  of  the  earth,  steered  steadily  to  the  north- 
west, and  for  nearly  four  months  never  saw  inhabited 
land.  He  estimated  that  he  had  sailed  over  the  Pacific 
not  less  than  twelve  thousand  miles.  He  crossed  the 
equator,  saw  once  more  the  pole-star,  and  at  length 
made  land — the  Ladrones.  Here  he  met  with  adven- 
turers from  Sumatra.  Among  these  islands  he  was 
killed,  either  by  the  savages  or  by  his  own  men.  His 
lieutenant,  Sebastian  d'Elcano,  now  took  command  of 
the  ship,  directing  her  course  for  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  encountering  frightful  hardships.  He  dou- 
bled the  cape  at  last,  and  then  for  the  fourth  time 
crossed  the  equator.  On  September  7,  1522,  after  a  voy- 
age of  more  than  three  years,  he  brought  his  ship,  the 
San  Vittoria,  to  anchor  in  the  port  of  St.  Lucar,  near 
Seville.  She  had  accomplished  the  greatest  achieve- 
ment in  the  history  of  the  human  race.  She  had  cir- 
cumnavigated the  earth. 

The  San  Vittoria,  sailing  westward,  had  come  back 


THE  SIZE  OF  THE  EARTH.  165 

to  her  starting-point.  Henceforth  the  theological  doc- 
trine of  the  flatness  of  the  earth  was  irretrievably  over- 
thrown. 

Five  years  after  the  completion  of  the  voyage  of 
Magellan,  was  made  the  first  attempt  in  Christendom 
to  ascertain  the  size  of  the  earth.  This  was  by  Fernel, 
a  French  physician,  who,  having  observed  the  height  of 
the  pole  at  Paris,  went  thence  northward  until  he  came 
to  a  place  where  the  height  of  the  pole  was  exactly  one 
degree  more  than  at  that  city.  He  measured  the  dis- 
tance between  the  two  stations  by  the  number  of  revo- 
lutions of  one  of  the  wheels  of  his  carriage,  to  which  a 
proper  indicator  had  been  attached,  and  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  earth's  circumference  is  about  twen- 
ty-four thousand  four  hundred  and  eighty  Italian  miles. 

Measures  executed  more  and  more  carefully  were 
made  in  many  countries:  by  Snell  in  Holland;  by  Nor- 
wood between  London  and  York  in  England;  by  Picard, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences, 
in  France.  Picard's  plan  was  to  connect  two  points  by 
a  series  of  triangles,  and,  thus  ascertaining  the  length  of 
the  arc  of  a  meridian  intercepted  between  them,  to  com- 
pare it  with  the  difference  of  latitudes  found  from  celes- 
tial observations.  The  stations  were  Malvoisine  in  the 
vicinity  of  Paris,  and  Sourdon  near  Amiens.  The  .dif- 
ference of  latitudes  was  determined  by  observing  the 
zenith-distances  of  8  Cassiopeia.  There  are  two  points 
of  interest  connected  with  Picard's  operation:  it  was 
the  first  in  which  instruments  furnished  with  telescopes 
were  employed;  and  its  result,  as  we  shall  shortly  see, 
was  to  Newton  the  first  confirmation  of  the  theory  of 
universal  gravitation. 

At  this  time  it  had  become  clear  from  mechanical 
considerations,  more  especially  such  as  had  been  deduced 
13 


1C6  THE  SIZE  OP  Till:    l.AKTII. 

by  Newton,  that,  since  the  earth  is  a  rotating  body,  her 
form  cannot  be  that  of  a  perfect  sphere,  but  must  be 
that  of  a  spheroid,  oblate  or  flattened  at  the  poles.  It 
would  follow,  from  this,  that  the  length  of  a  degree 
must  be  greater  near  the  poles  than  at  the  equator. 

The  French  Academy  resolved  to  extend  Picard's 
operation,  by  prolonging  the  measures  in  each  direction, 
and  making  the  result  the  basis  of  a  more  accurate  map 
of  France.  Delays,  however,  took  place,  and  it  was  not 
until  1718  that  the  measures,  from  Dunkirk  on  the 
north  to  the  southern  extremity  of  France,  were  com- 
pleted. A  discussion  arose  as  to  the  interpretation  of 
these  measures,  some  affirming  that  they  indicated  a 
prolate,  others  an  oblate  spheroid;  the  former  figure 
may  be  popularly  represented  by  a  lemon,  the  latter  by 
an  orange.  To  settle  this,  the  French  Government,  aided 
by  the  Academy,  sent  out  two  expeditions  to  measure 
degrees  of  the  meridian — one  under  the  equator,  the 
other  as  far  north  as  possible;  the  former  went  to  Peru, 
the  latter  to  Swedish  Lapland.  Very  great  difficulties 
were  encountered  by  both  parties.  The  Lapland  com- 
mission, however,  completed  its  observations  long  be- 
fore the  Peruvian,  which  consumed  not  less  than  nine 
years.  The  results  of  the  measures  thus  obtained  con- 
firmed the  theoretical  expectation  of  the  oblate  form. 
Since  that  time  many  extensive  and  exact  repetitions  of 
the  observation  have  been  made,  among  which  may  be 
mentioned  those  of  the  English  in  England  and  in  India, 
and  particularly  that  of  the  French  on  the  occasion  of 
the  introduction  of  the  metric  system  of  weights  and 
measures.  It  was  begun  by  Delambre  and  Mechain, 
from  Dunkirk  to  Barcelona,  and  thence  extended,  by 
Biot  and  Arago,  to  the  island  of  Formentera  near  Mi- 
norca. Its  length  was  nearly  twelve  and  a  half  degrees. 


COPERNICUS.  167 

Besides  this  method  of  direct  measurement,  the  fig- 
ure of  the  earth  may  be  determined  from  the  observed 
number  of  oscillations  made  by  a  pendulum  of  invariable 
length  in  different  latitudes.  These,  though  they  con- 
firm the  foregoing  results,  give  a  somewhat  greater 
ellipticity  to  the  earth  than  that  found  by  the  measure- 
ment of  degrees.  Pendulums  vibrate  more  slowly  the 
nearer  they  are  to  the  equator.  It  follows,  therefore, 
that  they  are  there  farther  from  the  centre  of  the  earth. 

From  the  most  reliable  measures  that  have  been 
made,  the  dimensions  of  the  earth  may  be  thus  stated: 

Greater  or  equatorial  diameter 7,925  miles. 

Less  or  polar  diameter 7,899      " 

Difference  or  polar  compression 26      " 

Such  was  the  result  of  the  discussion  respecting  the 
figure  and  size  of  the  earth.  While  it  was  yet  undeter- 
mined, another  controversy  arose,  fraught  with  even 
more  serious  consequences.  This  was  the  conflict  re- 
specting the  earth's  position  with  regard  to  the  sun  and 
the  planetary  bodies. 

Copernicus,  a  Prussian,  about  the  year  1507,  had 
completed  a  book  "  On  the  Eevolutions  of  the  Heavenly 
Bodies."  He  had  journeyed  to  Italy  in  his  youth,  had 
devoted  his  attention  to  astronomy,  and  had  taught 
mathematics  at  Home.  From  a  profound  study  of  the 
Ptolemaic  and  Pythagorean  systems,  he  had  come  to  a 
conclusion  in  favor  of  the  latter,  the  object  of  his  book 
being  to  sustain  it.  Aware  that  his  doctrines  were 
totally  opposed  to  revealed  truth,  and  foreseeing  that 
they  would  bring  upon  him  the  punishments  of  the 
Church,  he  expressed  himself  in  a  cautious  and  apolo- 
getic manner,  saying  that  he  had  only  taken  the  liberty 
of  trying  whether,  on  the  supposition  of  the  earth's 


1C8  THE  BOOK  OF  COPERNICUS. 

motion,  it  was  possible  to  find  better  explanations  than 
the  ancient  ones  of  the  revolutions  of  the  celestial  orbs; 
that  in  doing  this  he  had  only  taken  the  privilege  that 
had  been  allowed  to  others,  of  feigning  what  hypothesis 
they  chose.  The  preface  was  addressed  to  Pope  Paid 
III. 

Full  of  misgivings  as  to  what  might  be  the  result,  he 
refrained  from  publishing  his  book  for  thirty-six  years, 
thinking  that  "  perhaps  it  might  be  better  to  follow  the 
examples  of  the  Pythagoreans  and  others,  who  delivered 
their  doctrine  only  by  tradition  and  to  friends."  At 
the  entreaty  of  Cardinal  Schomberg  he  at  length  pub- 
lished it  in  1543.  A  copy  of  it  was  brought  to  him  on 
his  death-bed.  Its  fate  was  such  as  he  had  anticipated. 
The  Inquisition  condemned  it  as  heretical.  In  their  de- 
cree, prohibiting  it,  the  Congregation  of  the  Index  de- 
nounced his  system  as  "  that  false  Pythagorean  doctrine 
utterly  contrary  to  the  Holy  Scriptures." 

Astronomers  justly  affirm  that  the  book  of  Coperni- 
cus, "  De  Revolutionibus,"  changed  the  face  of  their 
science.  It  incontestably  established  the  heliocentric 
theory.  It  showed  that  the  distance  of  the  fixed  stars 
is  infinitely  great,  and  that  the  earth  is  a  mere  point 
in  the  heavens.  Anticipating  Newton,  Copernicus  im- 
puted gravity  to  the  sun,  the  moon,  and  heavenly 
bodies,  but  he  was  led  astray  by  assuming  that  the  celes- 
tial motions  must  be  circular.  Observations  on  the 
orbit  of  Mars,  and  his  different  diameters  at  different 
times,  had  led  Copernicus  to  his  theory. 

In  thus  denouncing  the  Copernican  system  as  being 
in  contradiction  to  revelation,  the  ecclesiastical  authori- 
ties were  doubtless  deeply  moved  by  inferential  consid- 
erations. To  dethrone  the  earth  from  her  central 
dominating  position,  to  give  her  many  equals  and  not  a 


INVENTION  OF  THE  TELESCOPE.  169 

few  superiors,  seemed  to  diminish  her  claims  upon  the 
Divine  regard.  If  each  of  the  countless  myriads  of 
stars  was  a  sun,  surrounded  by  revolving  globes,  peo- 
pled with  responsible  beings  like  ourselves,  if  we  had 
fallen  so  easily  and  had  been  redeemed  at  so  stupendous 
a  price  as  the  death  of  the  Son  of  God,  how  was  it  with 
them?  Of  them  were  there  none  who  had  fallen  or 
might  fall  like  us?  Where,  then,  for  them  could  a 
Savior  be  found? 

During  the  year  1608  one  Lippershey,  a  Hollander, 
discovered  that,  by  looking  through  two  glass  lenses, 
combined  in  a  certain  manner  together,  distant  objects 
were  magnified  and  rendered  very  plain.  He  had  in- 
vented the  telescope.  In  the  following  year  Galileo,  a 
Florentine,  greatly  distinguished  by  his  mathematical 
and  scientific  writings,  hearing  of  the  circumstance,  but 
without  knowing  the  particulars  of  the  construction, 
invented  a  form  of  the  instrument  for  himself.  Im- 
proving it  gradually,  he  succeeded  in  making  one  that 
could  magnify  thirty  times.  Examining  the  moon,  he 
found  that  she  had  valleys  like  those  of  the  earth,  and 
mountains  casting  shadows.  It  had  been  said  in  the 
old  times  that  in  the  Pleiades  there  were  formerly  seven 
stars,  but  a  legend  related  that  one  of  them  had  mysteri- 
ously disappeared.  On  turning  his  telescope  toward 
them,  Galileo  found  that  he  could  easily  count  not  fewer 
than  forty.  In  whatever  direction  he  looked,  he  dis- 
covered stars  that  were  totally  invisible  to  the  naked 
eye. 

On  the  night  of  January  7,  1610,  he  perceived  three 
small  stars  in  a  straight  line,  adjacent  to  the  planet 
Jupiter,  and,  a  few  evenings  later,  a  fourth.  He  found 
that  these  were  revolving  in  orbits  round  the  body  of 
the  planet,  and,  with  transport,  recognized  that  they 


170  DISCOVERIES  OP  GALILEO. 

presented  a  miniature  representation  of  the  Copernican 
system. 

The  announcement  of  these  wonders  at  once  attract- 
ed universal  attention.  The  spiritual  authorities  were 
not  slow  to  detect  their  tendency,  as  endangering  the 
doctrine  that  the  universe  was  made  for  man.  In  the 
creation  of  myriads  of  stars,  hitherto  invisible,  there 
must  surely  have  been  some  other  motive  than  that  of 
illuminating  the  nights  for  him. 

It  had  been  objected  to  the  Copernican  theory  that, 
if  the  planets  Mercury  and  Venus  move  round  the  sun 
in  orbits  interior  to  that  of  the  earth,  they  ought  to 
show  phases  like  those  of  the  moon;  and  that  in  the 
case  of  Venus,  which  is  so  brilliant  and  conspicuous, 
these  phases  should  be  very  obvious.  Copernicus  him- 
self had  admitted  the  force  of  the  objection,  and  had 
vainly  tried  to  find  an  explanation.  Galileo,  on  turning 
his  telescope  to  the  planet,  discovered  that  the  expected 
phases  actually  exist;  now  she  was  a  crescent,  then 
half-moon,  then  gibbous,  then  full.  Previously  to 
Copernicus,  it  was  supposed  that  the  planets  shine  by 
their  own  light,  but  the  phases  of  Venus  and  Mars 
proved  that  their  light  is  reflected.  The  Aristotelian 
notion,  that  celestial  differ  from  terrestrial  bodies  in 
being  incorruptible,  received  a  rude  shock  from  the  dis- 
coveries of  Galileo,  that  there  are  mountains  and  val- 
leys in  the  moon  like  those  of  the  earth,  that  the  sun  is 
not  perfect,  but  has  spots  on  his  face,  and  that  he  turns 
on  his  axis  instead  of  being  in  a  state  of  majestic  rest. 
The  apparition  of  new  stars  had  already  thrown  serious 
doubts  on  this  theory  of  incorruptibility. 

These  and  many  other  beautiful  telescopic  discov- 
eries tended  to  the  establishment  of  the  truth  of  the 
Copernican  theory  and  gave  unbounded  alarm  to  the 


PUNISHMENT  OF  GALILEO. 

Church.  By  the  low  and  ignorant  ecclesiastics  they 
were  denounced  as  deceptions  or  frauds.  Some  affirmed 
that  the  telescope  might  be  relied  on  well  enough  for 
terrestrial  objects,  but  with  the  heavenly  bodies  it  was 
altogether  a  different  affair.  Others  declared  that  its 
invention  was  a  mere  application  of  Aristotle's  remark 
that  stars  could  be  seen  in  the  daytime  from  the  bot- 
tom of  a  deep  well.  Galileo  was  accused  of  imposture, 
heresy,  blasphemy,  atheism.  With  a  view  of  defend- 
ing himself,  he  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Abbe  Castelli, 
suggesting  that  the  Scriptures  were  never  intended  to 
be  a  scientific  authority,  but  only  a  moral  guide.  This 
made  matters  worse.  He  was  summoned  before  the 
Holy  Inquisition,  under  an  accusation  of  having  taught 
that  the  earth  moves  round  the  sun,  a  doctrine  "  utterly 
contrary  to  the  Scriptures."  He  was  ordered  to  re- 
nounce that  heresy,  on  pain  of  being  imprisoned.  He 
was  directed  to  desist  from  teaching  and  advocating  the 
Copernican  theory,  and  pledge  himself  that  he  would 
neither  publish  nor  defend  it  for  the  future.  Know- 
ing well  that  Truth  has  no  need  of  martyrs,  he  assented 
to  the  required  recantation,  and  gave  the  promise  de- 
manded. 

For  sixteen  years  the  Church  had  rest.  But  in  1632 
Galileo  ventured  on  the  publication  of  his  work  entitled 
"  The  System  of  the  World/'  its  object  being  the  vindi- 
cation of  the  Copernican  doctrine.  He  was  again  sum- 
moned before  the1  Inquisition  at  Eome,  accused  of  hav- 
ing asserted  that  the  earth  moves  round  the  sun.  He 
was  declared  to  have  brought  upon  himself  the  penal- 
ties of  heresy.  On  his  knees,  with  his  hand  on  the 
Bible,  he  was  compelled  to  abjure  and  curse  the  doc- 
trine of  the  movement  of  the  earth.  What  a  spectacle! 
This  venerable  man,  the  most  illustrious  of  his  age, 


172  PUNISHMENT  OP  GALILEO. 

forced  by  the  threat  of  death  to  deny  facts  which  his 
judges  as  well  as  himself  knew  to  be  true!  He  was 
then  committed  to  prison,  treated  with  remorseless  se- 
verity during  the  remaining  ten  years  of  his  life,  and 
was  denied  burial  in  consecrated  ground.  Must  not 
that  be  false  which  requires  for  its  support  so  much 
imposture,  so  much  barbarity?  The  opinions  thus  de- 
fended by  the  Inquisition  are  now  objects  of  derision 
to  the  whole  civilized  world. 

One  of  the  greatest  of  modern  mathematicians,  refer- 
ring to  this  subject,  says  that  the  point  here  contested 
was  one  which  is  for  mankind  of  the  highest  interest, 
because  of  the  rank  it  assigns  to  the  globe  that  we  in- 
habit. If  the  earth  be  immovable  in  the  midst  of  the 
universe,  man  has  a  right  to  regard  himself  as  the  prin- 
cipal object  of  the  jcare  of  Nature.  But  if  the  earth  be 
only  one  of  the  planets  revolving  round  the  sun,  an  in- 
significant body  in  the  solar  system,  she  will  disappear 
entirely  in  the  immensity  of  the  heavens,  in  which  this 
system,  vast  as  it  may  appear  to  us,  is  nothing  but  an 
insensible  point. 

The  triumphant  establishment  of  the  Copernican 
doctrine  dates  from  the  invention  of  the  telescope. 
Soon  there  was  not  to  be  found  in  all  Europe  an  astron- 
omer who  had  not  accepted  the  heliocentric  theory  with 
its  essential  postulate,  the  double  motion  of  the  earth — 
a  movement  of  rotation  on  her  axis,  and  a  movement  of 
revolution  round  the  sun.  If  additional  proof  of  the 
latter  were  needed,  it  was  furnished  by  Bradley's  great 
discovery  of  the  aberration  of  the  fixed  stars,  an  aberra- 
tion depending  partly  on  the  progressive  motion  of  light, 
and  partly  on  the  revolution  of  the  earth.  Bradley's 
discovery  ranked  in  importance  with  that  of  the  preces- 
sion of  the  equinoxes.  Roomer's  discovery  of  the  pro- 


DISTANCE  OF  THE  EARTH  FROM  THE  SUN.  173 

gressive  motion  of  light,  though  denounced  by  Fon- 
tenelle  as  a  seductive  error,  and  not  admitted  by  Cas- 
sini,  at  length  forced  its  way  to  universal  acceptance. 

Next  it  was  necessary  to  obtain  correct  ideas  of  the 
dimensions  of  the  solar  system,  or,  putting  the  problem 
under  a  more  limited  form,  to  determine  the  distance 
of  the  earth  from  the  sun. 

In  the  time  of  Copernicus  it  was  supposed  that  the 
sun's  distance  could  not  exceed  five  million  miles,  and 
indeed  there  were  many  who  thought  that  estimate  very 
extravagant.  From  a  review  of  the  observations  of 
Tycho  Brahe,  Kepler,  however,  concluded  that  the  error 
was  actually  in  the  opposite  direction,  and  that  the  esti- 
mate must  be  raised  to  at  least  thirteen  million.  In 
1670  Cassini  showed  that  these  numbers  were  alto- 
gether inconsistent  with  the  facts,  and  gave  as  his  con- 
clusion eighty-five  million. 

The  transit  of  Venus  over  the  face  of  the  sun,  June 
3,  1769,  had  been  foreseen,  and  its  great  value  in  the 
solution  of  this  fundamental  problem  in  astronomy 
appreciated.  With  commendable  alacrity  various  gov- 
ernments contributed  their  assistance  in  making  obser- 
vations, so  that  in  Europe  there  were  fifty  stations,  in 
Asia  six,  in  America  seventeen.  It  was  for  this  pur- 
pose that  the  English  Government  dispatched  Captain 
Cook  on  his  celebrated  first  voyage.  He  went  to  Ota- 
heite.  His  voyage  was  crowned  with  success.  The  sun 
rose  without  a  cloud,  and  the  sky  continued  equally  clear 
throughout  the  day.  The  transit  at  Cook's  station  lasted 
from  about  half-past  nine  in  the  morning  until  about 
half-past  three  in  the  afternoon,  and  all  the  observations 
were  made  in  a  satisfactory  manner. 

But,  on  the  discussion  of  the  observations  made  at 
the  different  stations,  it  was  found  that  there  was  not 


174        DIMENSIONS  OF  THE  SOLAR  SYSTEM. 

the  accordance  that  could  have  been  desired — the  result 
varying  from  eighty-eight  to  one  hundred  and  nine 
million.  The  celebrated  mathematician,  Encke,  there- 
fore reviewed  them  in  1822-'24,  and  came  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  the  sun's  horizontal  parallax,  that  is,  the  angle 
under  which  the  semi-diameter  of  the  earth  is  seen  from 
the  sun,  is  8^^  seconds;  this  gave  as  the  distance 
95,274,000  miles.  Subsequently  the  observations  were 
reconsidered  by  Hansen,  who  gave  as  their  result  91,- 
659,000  miles.  Still  later,  Leverrier  made  it  91,759,- 
000.  Airy  and  Stone,  by  another  method,  made  it 
91,400,000;  Stone  alone,  by  a  revision  of  the  old  obser- 
vations, 91,730,000;  and  finally,  Foucault  and  Fizeau, 
from  physical  experiments,  determining  the  velocity  of 
light,  and  therefore  in  their  nature  altogether  differing 
from  transit  observations,  91,400,000.  Until  the  results 
of  the  transit  of  next  year  (1874)  are  ascertained,  it  must 
therefore  be  admitted  that  the  distance  of  the  earth  from 
the  sun  is  somewhat  less  than  ninety-two  million  miles. 

This  distance  once  determined,  the  dimensions  of  the 
solar  system  may  be  ascertained  with  ease  and  precision. 
It  is  enough  to  mention  that  the  distance  of  Neptune 
from  the  sun,  the  most  remote  of  the  planets  at  present 
known,  is  about  thirty  times  that  of  the  earth. 

By  the  aid  of  these  numbers  we  may  begin  to  gain 
a  just  appreciation  of  the  doctrine  of  the  human  destiny 
of  the  universe — the  doctrine  that  all  things  were  made 
for  man.  Seen  from  the  sun,  the  earth  dwindles  away 
to  a  mere  speck,  a  mere  dust-mote  glistening  in  his 
beams.  If  the  reader  wishes  a  more  precise  valuation, 
let  him  hold  a  page  of  this  book  a  couple  of  feet  from 
his  eye;  then  let  him  consider  one  of  its  dots  or  full- 
stops;  that  dot  is  several  hundred  times  larger  in  sur- 
face than  is  the  earth  as  seen  from  the  sun! 


DISTANCES  OF  THE  STAES.  175 

Of  what  consequence,  then,  can  such  an  almost  im- 
perceptible particle  be?  One  might  think  that  it  could 
be  removed  or  even  annihilated,  and  yet  never  be  missed. 
Of  what  consequence  is  one  of  those  human  monads,  of 
whom  more  than  a  thousand  millions  swarm  on  the  sur- 
face of  this  all  but  invisible  speck,  and  of  a  million  of 
whom  scarcely  one  will  leave  a  trace  that  he  has  ever 
existed?  Of  what  consequence  is  man,  his  pleasures  or 
his  pains? 

Among  the  arguments  brought  forward  against  the 
Copernican  system  at  the  time  of  its  promulgation,  was 
one  by  the  great  Danish  astronomer,  Tycho  Brahe,  origi- 
nally urged  by  Aristarchus  against  the  Pythagorean 
system,  to  the  effect  that  if,  as  was  alleged,  the  earth 
moves  round  the  sun,  there  ought  to  be  a  change  of  the 
direction  in  which  the  fixed  stars  appear.  At  one  time 
we  are  nearer  to  a  particular  region  of  the  heavens  by  a 
distance  equal  to  the  whole  diameter  of  the  earth's  orbit 
than  we  were  six  months  previously,  and  hence  there 
ought  to  be  a  change  in  the  relative  position  of  the 
stars;  they  should  seem  to  separate  as  we  approach 
them,  and  to  close  together  as  we  recede  from  them; 
or,  to  use  the  astronomical  expression,  these  stars  should 
have  a  yearly  parallax. 

The  parallax  of  a  star  is  the  angle  contained  between 
two  lines  drawn  from  it — one  to  the  sun,  the  other  to 
the  earth. 

At  that  time,  the  earth's  distance  from  the  sun  was 
greatly  under-estimated.  Had  it  been  known,  as  it  is 
now,  that  that  distance  exceeds  ninety  million  miles,  or 
that  the  diameter  of  the  orbit  is  more  than  one  hundred 
and  eighty  million,  that  argument  would  doubtless  have 
had  very  great  weight. 

In  reply  to  Tycho,  it  was  said  that,  since  the  paral- 


170  DISTANCES  OP  TUB  STARS. 

lax  of  a  body  diminishes  as  its  distance  increases,  a  star 
may  be  so  far  off  that  its  parallax  may  be  imperceptible. 
This  answer  proved  to  be  correct.  The  detection  of  the 
parallax  of  the  stars  depended  on  the  improvement  of 
instruments  for  the  measurement  of  angles. 

The  parallax  of  a  Centauri,  a  fine  double  star  of  the 
Southern  Hemisphere,  at  present  considered  to  be  the 
nearest  of  the  fixed  stars,  was  first  determined  by  Hen- 
derson and  Maclear  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  in 
1832-'33.  It  is  about  nine-tenths  of  a  second.  Hence 
this  star  is  almost  two  hundred  and  thirty  thousand 
times  as  far  from  us  as  the  sun.  Seen  from  it,  if  the 
sun  were  even  large  enough  to  fill  the  whole  orbit  of 
the  earth,  or  one  hundred  and  eighty  million  miles  in 
diameter,  he  would  be  a  mere  point.  With  its  com- 
panion, it  revolves  round  their  common  centre  of  grav- 
ity in  eighty-one  years,  and  hence  it  would  seem  that 
their  conjoint  mass  is  less  than  that  of  the  sun. 

The  star  61  Cygni  is  of  the  sixth  magnitude.  Its 
parallax  was  first  found  by  Bessel  in  1838,  and  is  about 
one-third  of  a  second.  The  distance  from  us  is,  there- 
fore, much  more  than  five  hundred  thousand  times  that 
of  the  sun.  With  its  companion,  it  revolves  round  their 
common  centre  of  gravity  in  five  hundred  and  twenty 
years.  Their  conjoint  weight  is  about  one-third  that  of 
the  sun. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  great  star  Sirius, 
the  brightest  in  the  heavens,  is  about  six  times  as  far  off 
as  a  Centauri.  His  probable  diameter  is  twelve  million 
miles,  and  the  light  he  emits  two  hundred  times  more 
brilliant  than  that  of  the  sun.  Yet,  even  through  the 
telescope,  he  has  no  measurable  diameter;  he  looks 
merely  like  a  very  bright  spark. 

The  stars,  then,  differ  not  merely  in  visible  magni- 


BRUNO.  177 

tude,  but  also  in  actual  size.  As  the  spectroscope  shows, 
they  differ  greatly  in  chemical  and  physical  constitution. 
That  instrument  is  also  revealing  to  us  the  duration  of 
the  life  of  a  star,  through  changes  in  the  refrangibility 
of  the  emitted  light.  Though,  as  we  have  seen,  the  near- 
est to  us  is  at  an  enormous  and  all  but  immeasurable  dis- 
tance, this  is  but  the  first  step — there  are  others  the  rays 
of  which  have  taken  thousands,  perhaps  millions,  of  years 
to  reach  us!  The  limits  of  our  own  system  are  far  be- 
yond the  range  of  our  greatest  telescopes;  what,  then, 
shall  we  say  of  other  systems  beyond?  Worlds  are  scat- 
tered like  dust  in  the  abysses  in  space. 

Have  these  gigantic  bodies — myriads  of  which  are 
placed  at  so  vast  a  distance  that  our  unassisted  eyes  can- 
not perceive  them — have  these  no  other  purpose  than 
that  assigned  by  theologians,  to  give  light  to  us?  Does 
not  their  enormous  size  demonstrate  that,  as  they  are 
centres  of  force,  so  they  must  be  centres  of  motion — 
suns  for  other  systems  of  worlds? 

"While  yet  these  facts  were  very  imperfectly  .known 
• — indeed,  were  rather  speculations  than  facts — Giordano 
Bruno,  an  Italian,  born  seven  years  after  the  death  of 
Copernicus,  published  a  work  on  the  "  Infinity  of  the 
Universe  and  of  Worlds; "  he  was  also  the  author  of 
"  Evening  Conversations  on  Ash- Wednesday,"  an  apol- 
ogy for  the  Copernican  system,  and  of  "  The  One  Sole 
Cause  of  Things."  To  these  may  be  added  an  allegory 
published  in  1584,  "  The  Expulsion  of  the  Triumphant 
Beast."  He  had  also  collected,  for  the  use  of  future  as- 
tronomers, all  the  observations  he  could  find  respecting 
the  new  star  that  suddenly  appeared  in  Cassiopeia,  A.  D. 
1572,  and  increased  in  brilliancy,  until  it  surpassed  all 
the  other  stars.  It  could  be  plainly  seen  in  the  day- 
time. On  a  sudden,  November  llth,  it  was  as  bright 


178  BRUNO. 

as  Venus  at  her  brightest.  In  the  following  March  it 
was  of  the  first  magnitude.  It  exhibited  various  hues 
of  color  in  a  few  months,  and  disappeared  in  March, 
1574. 

The  star  that  suddenly  appeared  in  Serpentarius,  in 
Kepler's  time  (1604),  was  at  first  brighter  than  Venus. 
It  lasted  more  than  a  year,  and,  passing  through  various 
tints  of  purple,  yellow,  red,  became  extinguished. 

Originally,  Bruno  was  intended  for  the  Church.  He 
had  become  a  Dominican,  but  was  led  into  doubt  by  his 
meditations  on  the  subjects  of  transubstantiation  and 
the  immaculate  conception.  Not  caring  to  conceal  his 
opinion,  he  soon  fell  under  the  censure  of  the  spiritual 
authorities,  and  found  it  necessary  to  seek  refuge  suc- 
cessively in  Switzerland,  France,  England,  Germany. 
The  cold-scented  sleuth-hounds  of  the  Inquisition  fol- 
lowed his  track  remorselessly,  and  eventually  hunted 
him  back  to  Italy.  He  was  arrested  in  Venice,  and 
confined  in  the  Piombi  for  six  years,  without  books,  or 
paper,  or  friends. 

In  England  he  had  given  lectures  on  the  plurality 
of  worlds,  and  in  that  country  had  written,  in  Italian, 
his  most  important  works.  It  added  not  a  little  to  the 
exasperation  against  him,  that  he  was  perpetually  de- 
claiming against  the  insincerity,  the  impostures,  of  his 
persecutors — that  wherever  he  went  he  found  skepti- 
cism varnished  over  and  concealed  by  hypocrisy;  and 
that  it  was  not  against  the  belief  of  men,  but  against 
their  pretended  belief,  that  he  was  fighting;  that  he 
was  struggling  with  an  orthodoxy  that  had  neither 
morality  nor  faith. 

In  his  "  Evening  Conversations "  he  had  insisted 
that  the  Scriptures  were  never  intended  to  teach  science, 
but  morals  only;  and  that  they  cannot  be  received  as  of 


SCIENTIFIC  IDEAS  OF  BRUNO.  179 

any  authority  on  astronomical  and  physical  subjects. 
Especially  must  we  reject  the  view  they  reveal  to  us  of 
the  constitution  of  the  world,  that  the  earth  is  a  flat  sur- 
face, supported  on  pillars;  that  the  sky  is  a  firmament — 
the  floor  of  heaven.  On  the  contrary,  we  must  believe 
that  the  universe  is  infinite,  and  that  it  is  filled  with 
self-luminous  and  opaque  worlds,  many  of  them  in- 
habited; that  there  is  nothing  above  and  around  us  but 
space  and  stars.  His  meditations  on  these  subjects  had 
brought  him  to  the  conclusion  that  the  views  of  Aver- 
roes  are  not  far  from  the  truth — that  there  is  an  Intel- 
lect which  animates  the  universe,  and  of  this  Intellect 
the  visible  world  is  only  an  emanation  or  manifestation, 
originated  and  sustained  by  force  derived  from  it,  and, 
were  that  force  withdrawn,  all  things  would  disappear. 
This  ever-present,  all-pervading  Intellect  is  God,  who 
lives  in  all  things,  even  such  as  seem  not  to  live;  that 
every  thing  is  ready  to  become  organized,  to  burst  into 
life.  God  is,  therefore,  "  the  One  Sole  Cause  of  Things/' 
"  the  All  in  All." 

Bruno  may  hence  be  considered  among  philosophical 
writers  as  intermediate  between  Averroes  and  Spinoza. 
The  latter  held  that  God  and  the  Universe  are  the  same, 
that  all  events  happen  by  an  immutable  law  of  Nature, 
by  an  unconquerable  necessity;  that  God  is  the  Uni- 
verse, producing  a  series  of  necessary  movements  or 
acts,  in  consequence  of  intrinsic,  unchangeable,  and  ir- 
resistible energy. 

On  the  demand  of  the  spiritual  authorities,  Bruno 
was  removed  from  Venice  to  Eome,  and  confined  in  the 
prison  of  the  Inquisition,  accused  not  only  of  being  a 
heretic,  but  also  a  heresiarch,  who  had  written  things 
unseemly  concerning  religion;  the  special  charge  against 
him  being  that  he  had  taught  the  plurality  of  worlds,  a 


I  si)  TIIK   MURDER  OP  BRUNO. 

doctrine  repugnant  to  the  whole  tenor  of  Scripture  and 
inimical  to  revealed  religion,  especially  as  regards  the 
plan  of  salvation.  After  an  imprisonment  of  two  years 
he  was  brought  before  his  judges,  declared  guilty  of  the 
acts  alleged,  excommunicated,  and,  on  his  nobly  refusing 
to  recant,  was  delivered  over  to  the  secular  authorities 
to  be  punished  "  as  mercifully  as  possible,  and  without 
the  shedding  of  his  blood,"  the  horrible  formula  for 
burning  a  prisoner  at  the  stake.  Knowing  well  that 
though  his  tormentors  might  destroy  his  body,  his 
thoughts  would  still  live  among  men,  he  said  to  his 
judges,  "  Perhaps  it  is  with  greater  fear  that  you  pass 
the  sentence  upon  me  than  I  receive  it."  The  sentence 
was  carried  into  effect,  and  he  was  burnt  at  Rome, 
February  16th,  A.  D.  1600. 

No  one  can  recall  without  sentiments  of  pity  the 
sufferings  of  those  countless  martyrs,  who  first  by  one 
party,  and  then  by  another,  have  been  brought  for  their 
religious  opinions  to  the  stake.  But  each  of  these  had 
in  his  supreme  moment  a  powerful  and  unfailing  sup- 
port. The  passage  from  this  life  to  the  next,  though 
through  a  hard  trial,  was  the  passage  from  a  transient 
trouble  to  eternal  happiness,  an  escape  from  the  cruelty 
of  earth  to  the  charity  of  heaven.  On  his  way  through 
the  dark  valley  the  martyr  believed  that  there  was  an 
invisible  hand  that  would  lead  him,  a  friend  that  would 
guide  him  all  the  more  gently  and  firmly  because  of  the 
terrors  of  the  flames.  For  Bruno  there  was  no  such 
support.  The  philosophical  opinions,  for  the  sake  of 
which  he  surrendered  his  life,  could  give  him  no  con- 
solation. He  must  fight  the  last  fight  alone.  Is  there 
not  something  very  grand  in  the  attitude  of  this  solitary 
man,  something  which  human  nature  cannot  help  ad- 
miring, as  he  stands  in  the  gloomy  hall  before  his  inex- 


MURDER  OF  BRUNO.  181 

orable  judges?  N~o  accuser,  no  witness,  no  advocate  is 
present,  but  the  familiars  of  the  Holy  Office,  clad  in 
black,  are  stealthily  moving  about.  The  tormentors  and 
the  rack  are  in  the  vaults  below.  He  is  simply  told 
that  he  has  brought  upon  himself  strong  suspicions  of 
heresy,  since  he  has  said  that  there  are  other  worlds  than 
ours.  He  is  asked  if  he  will  recant  and  abjure  his  error. 
He  cannot  and  will  not  deny  what  he  knows  to  be  true, 
and  perhaps — for  he  had  often  done  so  before — he  tells 
his  judges  that  they,  too,  in  their  hearts  are  of  the  same 
belief.  What  a  contrast  between  this  scene  of  manly 
honor,  of  unshaken  firmness,  of  inflexible  adherence  to 
the  truth,  and  that  other  scene  which  took  place  more 
than  fifteen  centuries  previously  by  the  fireside  in  the 
hall  of  Caiaphas  the  high-priest,  when  the  cock  crew, 
and  "  the  Lord  turned  and  looked  upon  Peter  "  (Luke 
xxii.  61)!  And  yet  it  is  upon  Peter  that  the  Church 
has  grounded  her  right  to  act  as  she  did  to  Bruno. 

But  perhaps  the  day  approaches  when  posterity  will 
offer  an  expiation  for  this  great  ecclesiastical  crime,  and 
a  statue  of  Bruno  be  unveiled  under  the  dome  of  St. 
Peter's  at  Rome. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

CONTROVERSY   RESPECTING  THE  AGE  OF  THE   EARTH. 

Scriptural  view  that  the  Earth  is  only  six  thousand  years  old,  and 
that  it  was  made  in  a  week. — Patristic  chronology  founded  on 
the  ages  of  the  patriarchs. — Difficulties  arising  from  different 
estimates  in  different  versions  of  the  Bible. 

Legend  of  the  Deluge. — The  repeopling. — The  Tower  of  Babel ;  the 
confusion  of  tongues. — The  primitive  language. 

Discovery  by  Cassini  of  the  oblaleness  of  the  planet  Jupiter. — 
Discovery  by  Newton  of  the  oblateness  of  the  Earth. — Deduc- 
tion that  she  has  been  modeled  by  mechanical  causes. — Con- 
firmation of  this  by  geological  discoveries  respecting  aqueous 
rocks;  corroboration  by  organic  remains. — The  necessity  of 
admitting  enormously  long  periods  of  time. — Displacement  of 
the  doctrine  of  Creation  by  that  of  Evolution. — Discoveries  re- 
specting the  Antiquity  of  Man. 

The  time-scale  and  space-scale  of  the  world  are  infinite. — Modera- 
tion with  which  the  discussion  of  the  Age  of  the  World  has 
been  conducted. 

THE  true  position  of  the  earth  in  the  universe  was 
established  only  after  a  long  and  severe  conflict.  The 
Church  used  whatever  power  she  had,  even  to  the  in- 
fliction of  death,  for  sustaining  her  ideas.  But  it  was 
in  vain.  The  evidence  in  behalf  of  the  Copernican 
theory  became  irresistible.  It  was  at  length  universally 
admitted  that  the  sun  is  the  central,  the  ruling  body 
of  our  system;  the  earth  only  one,  and  by  no  means  the 
largest,  of  a  family  of  encircling  planets. 

Taught  by  the  issue  of  that  dispute,  when  the  ques- 
182 


AGE  OF  THE  EARTH.  183 

tion  of  the  age  of  the  world  presented  itself  for  con- 
sideration, the  Church  did  not  exhibit  the  active  resist- 
ance she  had  displayed  on  the  former  occasion.  For, 
though  her  traditions  were  again  put  in  jeopardy,  they 
were  not,  in  her  judgment,  so  vitally  assailed.  To  de- 
throne the  Earth  from  her  dominating  position  was,  so 
the  spiritual  authorities  declared,  to  undermine  the  very 
foundation  of  revealed  truth;  but  discussions  respecting 
the  date  of  creation  might  within  certain  limits  be  per- 
mitted. Those  limits  were,  however,  very  quickly  over- 
passed, and  thus  the  controversy  became  as  dangerous  as 
the  former  one  had  been. 

It  was  not  possible  to  adopt  the  advice  given  by 
Plato  in  his  "  Timasus,"  when  treating  of  this  subject — 
the  origin  of  the  universe:  "  It  is  proper  that  both  I 
who  speak  and  you  who  judge  should  remember  that 
we  are  but  men,  and  therefore,  receiving  the  probable 
mythological  tradition,  it  is  meet  that  we  inquire  no 
further  into  it."  Since  the  time  of  St.  Augustine  the 
Scriptures  had  been  made  the  great  and  final  authority 
in  all  matters  of  science,  and  theologians  had  deduced 
from  them  schemes  of  chronology  and  cosmogony  which 
had  proved  to  be  stumbling-blocks  to  the  advance  of 
real  knowledge. 

It  is  not  necessary  for  us  to  do  more  than  to  allude 
to  some  ot  the  leading  features  of  these  schemes;  their 
peculiarities  will  be  easily  discerned  with  sufficient  clear- 
ness. Thus,  from  the  six  days  of  creation  and  the  Sab- 
bath-day of  rest,  since  we  are  told  that  a  day  is  with  the 
Lord  as  a  thousand  years,  it  was  inferred  that  the  dura- 
tion of  the  world  will  be  through  six  thousand  years  of 
suffering,  and  an  additional  thousand,  a  millennium  of 
rest.  It  was  generally  admitted  that  the  earth  was 
about  four  thousand  years  old  at  the  birth  of  Christ, 


PATRISTIC  CHRONOLOGY. 

but,  so  careless  had  Europe  been  in  the  study  of  its 
annals,  that  not  until  A.  D.  527  had  it  a  proper  chronol- 
ogy of  its  own.  A  Roman  abbot,  Dionysius  Exiguus, 
or  Dennis  the  Less,  then  fixed  the  vulgar  era,  and  gave 
Europe  its  present  Christian  chronology. 

The  method  followed  in  obtaining  the  earliest  chro- 
nological dates  was  by  computations,  mainly  founded 
on  the  lives  of  the  patriarchs.  Much  difficulty  was  en- 
countered in  reconciling  numerical  discrepancies.  Even 
if,  as  was  taken  for  granted  in  those  uncritical  ages, 
Moses  was  the  author  of  the  books  imputed  to  him,  due 
weight  was  not  given  to  the  fact  that  he  related  events, 
many  of  which  took  place  more  than  two  thousand  years 
before  he  was  born.  It  scarcely  seemed  necessary  to 
regard  the  Pentateuch  as  of  plenary  inspiration,  since  no 
means  had  been  provided  to  perpetuate  its  correctness. 
The  different  copies  which  had  escaped  the  chances 
of  time  varied  very  much;  thus  the  Samaritan  made 
thirteen  hundred  and  seven  years  from  the  Creation 
to  the  Deluge,  the  Hebrew  sixteen  hundred  and  fifty- 
six,  the  Septuagint  twenty-two  hundred  and  sixty- 
three.  The  Septuagint  counted  fifteen  hundred  years 
more  from  the  Creation  to  Abraham  than  the  Hebrew. 
In  general,  however,  there  was  an  inclination  to  the 
supposition  that  the  Deluge  took  place  about  two  thou- 
sand years  after  the  Creation,  and,  after  another  interval 
of  two  thousand  years,  Christ  was  born.  Persons  who 
had  given  much  attention  to  the  subject  affirmed  that 
there  were  not  less  than  one  hundred  and  thirty-two 
different  opinions  as  to  the  year  in  which  the  Messiah 
appeared,  and  hence  they  declared  that  it  was  inexpedi- 
ent to  press  for  acceptance  the  Scriptural  numbers  too 
closely,  since  it  was  plain,  from  the  great  differences  in 
different  copies,  that  there  had  been  no  providential 


PATRISTIC  CHRONOLOGY.  185 

intervention  to  perpetuate  a  correct  reading,  nor  was 
there  any  mark  by  which  men  could  be  guided  to  the 
only  authentic  version.  Even  those  held  in  the  highest 
esteem  contained  undeniable  errors.  Thus  the  Septua- 
gint  made  Methuselah  live  until  after  the  Deluge. 

It  was  thought  that,  in  the  antediluvian  world,  the 
year  consisted  of  three  hundred  and  sixty  days.  Some 
even  affirmed  that  this  was  the  origin  of  the  division 
of  the  circle  into  three  hundred  and  sixty  degrees.  At 
the  time  of  the  Deluge,  so  many  theologians  declared, 
the  motion  of  the  sun  was  altered,  and  the  year  became 
five  days  and  six  hours  longer.  There  was  a  prevalent 
opinion  that  that  stupendous  event  occurred  on  Novem- 
ber 3d,  in  the  year  of  the  world  1656.  Dr.  Whiston, 
however,  disposed  to  greater  .precision,  inclined  to  post- 
pone it  to  November  28th.  Some  thought  that  the 
rainbow  was  not  seen  until  after  the  Flood;  others,  ap- 
parently with  better  reason,  inferred  that  it  was  then 
first  established  as  a  sign.  On  coming  forth  from  the 
ark,  men  received  permission  to  use  flesh  as  food,  the 
antediluvians  having  been  herbivorous!  It  would 
seem  that  the  Deluge  had  not  occasioned  any  great 
geographical  changes,  for  Noah,  relying  on  his  antedi- 
luvian knowledge,  proceeded  to  divide  the  earth  among 
his  three  sons,  giving  to  Japhet  Europe,  to  Shem  Asia, 
to  Ham  Africa.  No  provision  was  made  for  America, 
as  he  did  not  know  of  its  existence.  These  patriarchs, 
undeterred  by  the  terrible  solitudes  to  which  they  were 
going,  by  the  undrained  swamps  and  untracked  for- 
ests, journeyed  to  their  allotted  possessions,  and  com- 
menced the  settlement  of  the  continents. 

In  seventy  years  the  Asiatic  family  had  increased 
to  several  hundred.  They  had  found  their  way  to  the 
plains  of  Mesopotamia,  and  there,  for  some  motive  that 


180  PATRISTIC  CHRONOLOGY. 

we  cannot  divine,  began  building  a  tower  "  whose  top 
might  reach  to  heaven."  Eusebius  informs  us  that  the 
work  continued  for  forty  years.  They  did  not  abandon 
it  until  a  miraculous  confusion  of  their  language  took 
place  and  dispersed  them  all  over  the  earth.  St.  Am- 
brose shows  that  this  confusion  could  not  have  been 
brought  about  by  men.  Origen  believes  that  not  even 
the  angels  accomplished  it. 

The  confusion  of  tongues  has  given  rise  to  many 
curious  speculations  among  divines  as  to  the  primitive 
speech  of  man.  Some  have  thought  that  the  language 
of  Adam  consisted  altogether  of  nouns,  that  they  were 
monosyllables,  and  that  the  confusion  was  occasioned  by 
the  introduction  of  polysyllables.  But  these  learned 
men  must  surely  have  overlooked  the  numerous  conver- 
sations reported  in  Genesis,  such  as  those  between  the 
Almighty  and  Adam,  the  serpent  and  Eve,  etc.  In 
these  all  the  various  parts  of  speech  occur.  There  was, 
however,  a  coincidence  of  opinion  that  the  primitive 
language  was  Hebrew.  On  the  general  principles  of 
patristicism,  it  was  fitting  that  this  should  be  the  case. 

The  Greek  Fathers  computed  that,  at  the  time  of 
the  dispersion,  seventy-two  nations  were  formed,  and  in 
this  conclusion  St.  Augustine  coincides.  But  difficulties 
seem  to  have  been  recognized  in  these  computations; 
thus  the  learned  Dr.  Shuckford,  .who  has  treated  very 
elaborately  on  all  the  foregoing  points  in  his  excellent 
work  "  On  the  Sacred  and  Profane  History  of  the  World 
connected,"  demonstrates  that  there  could  not  have  been 
more  than  twenty-one  or  twenty-two  men,  women,  and 
children,  in  each  of  those  kingdoms. 

A  very  vital  point  in  this  system  of  chronological 
computation,  based  upon  the  ages  of  the  patriarchs,  was 
the  great  length  of  life  to  which  those  worthies  attained. 


PATRISTIC  CHRONOLOGY.  187 

It  was  generally  supposed  that  before  the  Flood  "  there 
was  a  perpetual  equinox/'  and  no  vicissitudes  in  Nature. 
After  that  event  the  standard  of  life  diminished  one- 
half,  and  in  the  time  of  the  Psalmist  it  had  sunk  to 
seventy  years,  at  which  it  still  remains.  Austerities  of 
climate  were  affirmed  to  have  arisen  through  the  shifting 
of  the  earth's  axis  at  the  Flood,  and  to  this  ill  effect  were 
added  the  noxious  influences  of  that  universal  catastro- 
phe, which,  "  converting  the  surface  of  the  earth  into  a 
vast  swamp,  gave  rise  to  fermentations  of  the  blood 
and  a  weakening  of  the  fibres." 

With  a  view  of  avoiding  difficulties  arising  from  the 
extraordinary  length  of  the  patriarchal  lives,  certain 
divines  suggested  that  the  years  spoken  of  by  the  sacred 
penman  were  not  ordinary  but  lunar  years.  This, 
though  it  might  bring  the  age  of  those  venerable  men 
within  the  recent  term  of  life,  introduced,  however, 
another  insuperable  difficulty,  since  it  made  them  have 
children  when  only  five  or  six  years  old. 

Sacred  science,  as  interpreted  by  the  Fathers  of  the 
Church,  demonstrated  these  facts:  1.  That  the  date  of 
Creation  was  comparatively  recent,  not  more  than  four 
or  five  thousand  years  before  Christ;  2.  That  the  act  of 
Creation  occupied  the  space  of  six  ordinary  days;  3. 
That  the  Deluge  was  universal,  and  that  the  animals 
which  survived  it  were  preserved  in  an  ark;  4.  That 
Adam  was  created  perfect  in  morality  and  intelligence, 
that  he  fell,  and  that  his  descendants  have  shared  in  his 
sin  and  his  fall. 

Of  these  points  and  others  that  might  be  mentioned 
there  were  two  on  which  ecclesiastical  authority  felt 
that  it  must  insist.  These  were:  1.  The  recent  date  of 
Creation;  for,  the  remoter  that  event,  the  more  urgent 
the  necessity  of  vindicating  the  justice  of  God,  who  ap- 


188  SCIENTIFIC  COSMOGONY". 

parcntly  had  left  the  majority  of  our  race  to  its  fate, 
and  had  reserved  salvation  for  the  few  who  were  living 
in  the  closing  ages  of  the  world;  2.  The  perfect  con- 
dition of  Adam  at  his  creation,  since  this  was  necessary 
to  the  theory  of  the  fall  and  the  plan  of  salvation. 

Theological  authorities  were  therefore  constrained  to 
look  with  disfavor  on  any  attempt  to  carry  back  the 
origin  of  the  earth  to  an  epoch  indefinitely  remote,  and 
on  the  Mohammedan  theory  of  the  evolution  of  man 
from  lower  forms,  or  his  gradual  development  to  his 
present  condition  in  the  long  lapse  of  time. 

From  the  puerilities,  absurdities,  and  contradictions 
of  the  foregoing  statement,  we  may  gather  how  very  un- 
satisfactory this  so-called  sacred  science  was.  And  per- 
haps we  may  be  brought  to  the  conclusion  to  which  Dr. 
Shuckford,  above  quoted,  was  constrained  to  come,  after 
his  wearisome  and  unavailing  attempt  to  coordinate  its 
various  parts:  "  As  to  the  Fathers  of  the  first  ages  of 
the  Church,  they  were  good  men,  but  not  men  of  uni- 
versal learning." 

Sacred  cosmogony  regards  the  formation  and  mod- 
eling of  the  earth  as  the  direct  act  of  God;  it  rejects 
the  intervention  of  secondary  causes  in  those  events. 

Scientific  cosmogony  dates  from  the  telescopic  dis- 
covery made  by  Cassini — an  Italian  astronomer,  under 
whose  care  Louis  XIV.  placed  the  Observatory  of  Paris 
— that  the  planet  Jupiter  is  not  a  sphere,  but  an  oblate 
spheroid,  flattened  at  the  poles.  Mechanical  philosophy 
demonstrated  that  such  a  figure  is  the  necessary  result 
of  the  rotation  of  a  yielding  mass,  and  that  the  more 
rapid  the  rotation  the  greater  the  flattening,  or,  what 
comes  to  the  same  thing,  the  greater  the  equatorial  bulg- 
ing must  be. 


FORMATION  OF  THE  EARTH.  189 

From  considerations — purely  of  a  mechanical  kind — 
Newton  had  foreseen  that  such  likewise,  though  to  a 
less  striking  extent,  must  be  the  figure  of  the  earth. 
To  the  protuberant  mass  is  due  the  precession  of  the 
equinoxes,  which  requires  twenty-five  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  sixty-eight  years  for  its  completion,  and 
also  the  nutation  of  the  earth's  axis,  discovered  by 
Bradley.  'We  have  already  had  occasion  to  remark 
that  the  earth's  equatorial  diameter  exceeds  the  polar  by 
about  twenty-six  miles. 

Two  facts  are  revealed  by  the  oblateness  of  the 
earth:  1.  That  she  has  formerly  been  in  a  yielding 
or  plastic  condition;  2.  That  she  has  been  modeled  by  a 
mechanical  and  therefore  a  secondary  cause. 

But  this  influence  of  mechanical  causes  is  mani- 
fested not  only  in  the  exterior  configuration  of  the 
globe  of  the  earth  as  a  spheroid  of  revolution,  it  also 
plainly  appears  on  an  examination  of  the  arrangement 
of  her  substance. 

If  we  consider  the  aqueous  rocks,  their  aggregate  is 
many  miles  in  thickness;  yet  they  undeniably  have 
been  of  slow  deposit.  The  material  of  which  they  con- 
sist has  been  obtained  by  the  disintegration  of  ancient 
lands;  it  has  found  its  way  into  the  water-courses,  and 
by  them  been  distributed  anew.  Effects  of  this  kind, 
taking  place  before  our  eyes,  require  a  very  consid- 
erable lapse  of  time  to  produce  a  well-marked  result — 
a  water  deposit  may  in  this  manner  measure  in  thick- 
ness a  few  inches  in  a  century — what,  then,  shall  we 
say  as  to  the  time  consumed  in  the  formation  of  depos- 
its of  many  thousand  yards? 

The  position  of  the  coast-line  of  Egypt  has  been 
known  for  much  more  than  two  thousand  years.  In 
that  time  it  has  made,  by  reason  of  the  detritus  brought 


190  ANTIQUITY  OP  THE  EARTH. 

down  by  the  Nile,  a  distinctly-marked  encroachment 
on  the  Mediterranean.  But  all  Lower  Egypt  has  had 
a  similar  origin.  The  coast-line  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Mississippi  has  been  well  known  for  three  hundred 
years,  and  during  that  time  has  scarcely  made  a  percep- 
tible advance  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico;  but  there  was  a 
time  when  the  delta  of  that  river  was  at  St.  Louis,  more 
than  seven  hundred  miles  from  its  present  position.  In 
Egypt  and  in  America — in  fact,  in  all  countries — the 
rivers  have  been  inch  by  inch  prolonging  the  land  into 
the  sea;  the  slowness  of  their  work  and  the  vastness  of 
its  extent  satisfy  us  that  we  must  concede  for  the  opera- 
tion enormous  periods  of  time. 

To  the  same  conclusion  we  are  brought  if  we  con- 
sider the  filling  of  lakes,  the  deposit  of  travertines,  the 
denudation  of  hills,  the  cutting  action  of  the  sea  on  its 
shores,  the  undermining  of  cliffs,  the  weathering  of 
rocks  by  atmospheric  water  and  carbonic  acid. 

Sedimentary  strata  must  have  been  originally  de- 
posited in  planes  nearly  horizontal.  Vast  numbers  of 
them  have  been  forced,  either  by  paroxysms  at  intervals 
or  by  gradual  movement,  into  all  manner  of  angular  in- 
clinations. Whatever  explanations  we  may  offer  of 
these  innumerable  and  immense  tilts  and  fractures,  they 
would  seem  to  demand  for  their  completion  an  incon- 
ceivable length  of  time. 

The  coal-bearing  strata  in  Wales,  by  their  gradual 
submergence,  have  attained  a  thickness  of  12,000  feet; 
in  Nova  Scotia  of  14,570  feet.  So  slow  and  so  steady 
was  this  submergence,  that  erect  trees  stand  one  above 
another  on  successive  levels;  seventeen  such  repetitions 
may  be  counted  in  a  thickness  of  4,515  feet.  The  age 
of  the  trees  is  proved  by  their  size,  some  being  four  feet 
in  diameter.  Round  them,  as  they  gradually  went 


GEOLOGICAL  EVIDENCE  OF  THE  EARTH'S  AGE.  191 

down  with  the  subsiding  soil,  calamites  grew,  at  one 
level  after  another.  In  the  Sydney  coal-field  fifty-nine 
fossil  forests  occur  in  superposition. 

Marine  shells,  found  on  mountain-tops  far  in  the 
interior  of  continents,  were  regarded  by  theological  writ- 
ers as  an  indisputable  illustration  of  the  Deluge.  But 
when,  as  geological  studies  became  more  exact,  it  was 
proved  that  in  the  crust  of  the  earth  vast  fresh-water  for- 
mations are  repeatedly  intercalated  with  vast  marine 
ones,  like  the  leaves  of  a  book,  it  became  evident  that 
no  single  cataclysm  was  sufficient  to  account  for  such 
results;  that  the  same  region,  through  gradual  varia- 
tions of  its  level  and  changes  in  its  topographical  sur- 
roundings, had  sometimes  been  dry  land,  sometimes  cov- 
ered with  fresh  and  sometimes  with  sea  water.  It  be- 
came evident  also  that,  for  the  completion  of  these 
changes,  tens  of  thousands  of  years  were  required. 

To  this  evidence  of  a  remote  origin  of  the  earth, 
derived  from  the  vast  superficial  extent,  the  enormous 
thickness,  and  the  varied  characters  of  its  strata,  was 
added  an  imposing  body  of  proof  depending  on  its  fos- 
sil remains.  The  relative  ages  of  formations  having 
been  ascertained,  it  was  shown  that  there  has  been  an 
advancing  physiological  progression  of  organic  forms, 
both  vegetable  and  animal,  from  the  oldest  to  the  most 
recent;  that  those  which  inhabit  the  surface  in  our 
times  are  but  an  insignificant  fraction  of  the  prodi- 
gious multitude  that  have  inhabited  it  heretofore;  that 
for  each  species  now  living  there  are  thousands  that 
have  become  extinct.  Though  special  formations  are 
so  strikingly  characterized  by  some  predominating  type 
of  life  as  to  justify  such  expressions  as  the  age  of  mol- 
lusks,  the  age  of  reptiles,  the  age  of  mammals,  the  intro- 
duction of  the  new-comers  did  not  take  place  abruptly, 


<  KKAT1ON  AND  ELOLUTloN. 

as  by  sudden  creation.  They  gradually  emerged  in  an 
antecedent  age,  reached  their  culmination  in  the  one 
which  they  characterize,  and  then  gradually  died  out  in 
a  succeeding.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  sudden  crea- 
tion, a  sudden  strange  appearance;  but  there  is  a  slow 
metamorphosis,  a  slow  development  from  a  preexisting 
form.  Here  again  we  encounter  the  necessity  of  ad- 
mitting for  such  results  long  periods  of  time.  Within 
the  range  of  history  no  well-marked  instance  of  such 
development  has  been  witnessed,  and  we  speak  with 
hesitation  of  doubtful  instances  of  extinction.  Yet  in 
geological  times  myriads  of  evolutions  and  extinctions 
have  occurred. 

Since  thus,  within  the  experience  of  man,  no  case  of 
metamorphosis  or  development  has  been  observed,  some 
have  been  disposed  to  deny  its  possibility  altogether, 
affirming  that  all  the  different  species  have  come  into 
existence  by  separate  creative  acts.  But  surely  it  is  less 
unphilosophical  to  suppose  that  each  species  has  been 
evolved  from  a  predecessor  by  a  modification  of  its 
parts,  than  that  it  has  suddenly  started  into  existence 
out  of  nothing.  Nor  is  there  much  weight  in  the  re- 
mark that  no  man  has  ever  witnessed  such  a  transfor- 
mation taking  place.  Let  it  be  remembered  that  no 
man  has  ever  witnessed  an  act  of  creation,  the  sudden 
appearance  of  an  organic  form,  without  any  progenitor. 

Abrupt,  arbitrary,  disconnected  creative  acts  may 
serve  to  illustrate  the  Divine  power;  but  that  continu- 
ous unbroken  chain  of  organisms  which  extends  from 
palaeozoic  formations  to  the  formations  of  recent  times, 
a  chain  in  which  each  link  hangs  on  a  preceding  and 
sustains  a  succeeding  one,  demonstrates  to  us  not  only 
that  the  production  of  animated  beings  is  governed  by 
law,  but  that  it  is  by  law  that  has  undergone  no  change. 


GEOLOGICAL  EVIDENCE  OF  THE  EARTH'S  AGE.  193 

In  its  operation,  through  myriads  of  ages,  there  has  been 
no  variation,  no  suspension. 

The  foregoing  paragraphs  may  serve  to  indicate  the 
character  of  a  portion  of  the  evidence  with  which  we 
must  deal  in  considering  the  problem  of  the  age  of  the 
earth.  Through  the  unintermitting  labors  of  geologists, 
so  immense  a  mass  has  been  accumulated,  that  many 
volumes  would  be  required  to  contain  the  details.  It 
is  drawn  from  the  phenomena  presented  by  all  kinds 
of  rocks,  aqueous,  igneous,  metamorphic.  Of  aqueous 
rocks  it  investigates  the  thickness,  the  inclined  positions, 
and  how  they  rest  unconformably  on  one  another;  how 
those  that  are  of  fresh- water  origin  are  intercalated  with 
those  that  are  marine;  how  vast  masses  of  material  have 
been  removed  by  slow-acting  causes  of  denudation,  and 
extensive  geographical  surfaces  have  been  remodeled; 
how  continents  have  undergone  movements  of  elevation 
and  depression,  their  shores  sunk  under  the  ocean,  or 
sea-beaches  and  sea-cliffs  carried  far  into  the  interior. 
It  considers  the  zoological  and  botanical  facts,  the  fauna 
and  flora  of  the  successive  ages,  and  how  in  an  orderly 
manner  the  chain  of  organic  forms,  plants,  and  animals, 
has  been  extended,  from  its  dim  and  doubtful  begin- 
nings to  our  own  times.  From  facts  presented  by  the 
deposits  of  coal — coal  which,  in  all  its  varieties,  has 
originated  from  the  decay  of  plants — it  not  only  demon- 
strates the  changes  that  have  taken  place  in  the  earth's 
atmosphere,  but  also  universal  changes  of  climate.  From 
other  facts  it  proves  that  there  have  been  oscillations  of 
temperature,  periods  in  which  the  mean  heat  has  risen, 
and  periods  in  which  the  polar  ices  and  snows  have 
covered  large  portions  of  the  existing  continents — gla- 
cial periods,  as  they  are  termed. 

One  school  of  geologists,  resting  its  argument  on 


194  ASTRONOMICAL  EVIDENCE. 

very  imposing  evidence,  teaches  that  the  whole  mass  of 
the  earth,  from  being  in  a  molten,  or  perhaps  a  vaporous 
condition,  has  cooled  by  radiation  in  the  lapse  of  mill- 
ions of  ages,  until  it  has  reached  its  present  equilibrium 
of  temperature.  Astronomical  observations  give  great 
weight  to  this  interpretation,  especially  so  far  as  the 
planetary  bodies  of  the  solar  system  are  concerned.  It 
is  also  supported  by  such  facts  as  the  small  mean  den- 
sity of  the  earth,  the  increasing  temperature  at  increas- 
ing depths,  the  phenomena  of  volcanoes  and  injected 
veins,  and  those  of  igneous  and  metamorphic  rocks. 
To  satisfy  the  physical  changes  which  this  school  of 
geologists  contemplates,  myriads  of  centuries  are  re- 
quired. 

But,  with  the  views  that  the  adoption  of  the  Co- 
pernican  system  has  given  us,  it  is  plain  that  we  can- 
not consider  the  origin  and  biography  of  the  earth 
in  an  isolated  way;  we  must  include  with  her  all  the 
other  members  of  the  system  or  family  to  which  she 
belongs.  Nay,  more,  we  cannot  restrict  ourselves  to 
the  solar  system;  we  must  embrace  in  our  discus- 
sions the  starry  worlds.  And,  since  we  have  become 
familiarized  with  their  almost  immeasurable  distances 
from  one  another,  we  are  prepared  to  accept  for  their 
origin  an  immeasurably  remote  time.  There  are  stars 
so  far  off  that  their  light,  fast  as  it  travels,  has  taken 
thousands  of  years  to  reach  us,  and  hence  they  must 
have  been  in  existence  many  thousands  of  years  ago. 

Geologists  having  unanimously  agreed — for  perhaps 
there  is  not  a  single  dissenting  voice — that  the  chronolo- 
gy of  the  earth  must  be  greatly  extended,  attempts  have 
been  made  to  give  precision  to  it.  Some  of  these  have 
been  based  on  astronomical,  some  on  physical  principles. 
Thus  calculations  founded  on  the  known  changes  of  the 


ANTIQUITY  OF  MAN.  195 

eccentricity  of  the  earth's  orbit,  with  a  view  of  deter- 
mining the  lapse  of  time  since  the  beginning  of  the 
last  glacial  period,  have  given  two  hundred  and  forty 
thousand  years.  Though  the  general  postulate  of  the 
immensity  of  geological  times  may  be  conceded,  such 
calculations  are  on  too  uncertain  a  theoretical  basis  to 
furnish  incontestable  results. 

But,  considering  the  whole  subject  from  the  present 
scientific  stand-point,  it  is  very  clear  that  the  views  pre- 
sented by  theological  writers,  as  derived  from  the  Mo- 
saic record,  cannot  be  admitted.  Attempts  have  been 
repeatedly  made  to  reconcile  the  revealed  with  the  dis- 
covered facts,  but  they  have  proved  to  be  unsatisfactory. 
The  Mosaic  time  is  too  short,  the  order  of  creation  in- 
correct, the  divine  interventions  too  anthropomorphic; 
and,  though  the  presentment  of  the  subject  is  in  har- 
mony with  the  ideas  that  men  have  entertained,  when 
first  their  minds  were  turned  to  the  acquisition  of  natu- 
ral knowledge,  it  is  not  in  accordance  with  their  present 
conceptions  of  the  insignificance  of  the  earth  and  the 
grandeur  of  the  universe. 

Among  late  geological  discoveries  is  one  of  special 
interest;  it  is  the  detection  of  human  remains  and  hu- 
man works  in  formations  which,  though  geologically 
recent,  are  historically  very  remote. 

The  fossil  remains  of  men,  with  rude  implements 
of  rough  or  chipped  flint,  of  polished  stone,  of  bone,  of 
bronze,  are  found  in  Europe  in  caves,  in  drifts,  in  peat- 
beds.  They  indicate  a  savage  life,  spent  in  hunting  and 
fishing.  Eecent  researches  give  reason  to  believe  that, 
under  low  and  base  grades,  the  existence  of  man  can  be 
traced  back  into  the  tertiary  times.  He  was  contempo- 
rary with  the  southern  elephant,  the  rhinoceros  lepto- 


196  ANTIQUITY  OF  MAN. 

rhinus,  the  great  hippopotamus,  perhaps  even  in  the 
miocene  contemporary  with  the  mastodon. 

At  the  close  of  the  Tertiary  period,  from  causes  not 
yet  determined,  the  Northern  Hemisphere  underwent 
a  great  depression  of  temperature.  From  a  torrid  it 
passed  to  a  glacial  condition.  After  a  period  of  prodi- 
gious length,  the  temperature  again  rose,  and  the  gla- 
ciers that  had  so  extensively  covered  the  surface  receded. 
Once  more  there  was  a  decline  in  the  heat,  and  the  gla- 
ciers again  advanced,  but  this  time  not  so  far  as  for- 
merly. This  ushered  in  the  Quaternary  period,  during 
which  very  slowly  the  temperature  came  to  its  present 
degree.  The  water  deposits  that  were  being  made  re- 
quired thousands  of  centuries  for  their  completion.  At 
the  beginning  of  the  Quaternary  period  there  were  alive 
the  cave-bear,  the  cave-lion,  the  amphibious  hippopota- 
mus, the  rhinoceros  with  chambered  nostrils,  the  mam- 
moth. In  fact,  the  mammoth  swarmed.  He  delighted 
in  a  boreal  climate.  By  degrees  the  reindeer,  the  horse, 
the  ox,  the  bison,  multiplied,  and  disputed  with  him  his 
food.  Partly  for  this  reason,  and  partly  because  of  the 
increasing  heat,  he  became  extinct.  From  middle  Eu- 
rope, also,  the  reindeer  retired.  His  departure  marks 
the  end  of  the  Quaternary  period. 

Since  the  advent  of  man  on  the  earth,  we  have, 
therefore,  to  deal  with  periods  of  incalculable  length. 
Vast  changes  in  the  climate  and  fauna  were  produced 
by  the  slow  operation  of  causes  such  as  are  in  action  at 
the  present  day.  Figures  cannot  enable  us  to  appreciate 
these  enormous  lapses  of  time. 

It  seems  to  be  satisfactorily  established,  that  a  race 
allied  to  the  Basques  may  be  traced  back  to  the  Neo- 
lithic age.  At  that  time  the  British  Islands  were  un- 
dergoing a  change  of  level,  like  that  at  present  occur- 


ANTIQUITY  OF  MAN.  197 

ring  in  the  Scandinavian  Peninsula.  Scotland  was  ris- 
ing, England  was  sinking.  In  the  Pleistocene  age  there 
existed  in  Central  Europe  a  rude  race  of  hunters  and 
fishers  closely  allied  to  the  Esquimaux. 

In  the  old  glacial  drift  of  Scotland  the  relics  of  man 
are  found  along  with  those  of  the  fossil  elephant.  This 
carries  us  back  to  that  time  above  referred  to,  when  a 
large  portion  of  Europe  was  covered  with  ice,  which 
had  edged  down  from  the  polar  regions  to  southerly 
latitudes,  and,  as  glaciers,  descended  from  the  summits 
of  the  mountain-chains  into  the  plains.  Countless  spe- 
cies of  animals  perished  in  this  cataclysm  of  ice  and 
snow,  but  man  survived. 

In  his  primitive  savage  condition,  living  for  the 
most  part  on  fruits,  roots,  shell-fish,  man  was  in  posses- 
sion of  a  fact  which  was  certain  eventually  to  insure 
his  civilization.  He  knew  how  to  make  a  fire.  In  peat- 
beds,  under  the  remains  of  trees  that  in  those  localities 
have  long  ago  become  extinct,  his  relics  are  still  found, 
the  implements  that  accompany  him  indicating  a  dis- 
tinct chronological  order.  Near  the  surface  are  those  of 
bronze,  lower  down  those  of  bone  or  horn,  still  lower 
those  of  polished  stone,  and  beneath  all  those  of  chipped 
or  rough  stone.  The  date  of  the  origin  of  some  of  these 
beds  cannot  be  estimated  at  less  than  forty  or  fifty  thou- 
sand years. 

The  caves  that  have  been  examined  in  France  and 
elsewhere  have  furnished  for  the  Stone  age  axes,  knives, 
lance  and  arrow  points,  scrapers,  hammers.  The  change 
from  what  may  be  termed  the  chipped  to  the  polished 
stone  period  is  very  gradual.  It  coincides  with  the 
domestication  of  the  dog,  an  epoch  in  hunting-life.  It 
embraces  thousands  of  centuries,  The  appearance  of 

arrow-heads  indicates  the  invention  of  the  bow,  and  the 
15 


198  ANTIQUITY  OP  MAN. 

rise  of  man  from  a  defensive  to  an  offensive  mode  of 
life.  The  introduction  of  barbed  arrows  shows  how  in- 
ventive talent  was  displaying  itself;  bone  and  horn  tips, 
that  the  huntsman  was  including  smaller  animals,  and 
perhaps  birds,  in  his  chase;  bone  whistles,  his  compan- 
ionship with  other  huntsmen  or  with  his  dog.  The 
scraping-knives  of  flint  indicate  the  use  of  skin  for 
clothing,  and  rude  bodkins  and  needles  its  manufacture. 
Shells  perforated  for  bracelets  and  necklaces  prove  how 
soon  a  taste  for  personal  adornment  was  acquired;  the 
implements  necessary  for  the  preparation  of  pigments 
suggest  the  painting  of  the  body,  and  perhaps  tattooing; 
and  batons  of  rank  bear  witness  to  the  beginning  of  a 
social  organization. 

With  the  utmost  interest  we  look  upon  the  first 
germs  of  art  among  these  primitive  men.  They  have 
left  us  rude  sketches  on  pieces  of  ivory  and  flakes  of 
bone,  and  carvings,  of  the  animals  contemporary  with 
them.  In  these  prehistoric  delineations,  sometimes  not 
without  spirit,  we  have  mammoths,  combats  of  rein- 
deer. One  presents  us  with  a  man  harpooning  a  fish, 
another  a  hunting-scene  of  naked  men  armed  with  the 
dart.  Man  is  the  only  animal  who  has  the  propensity 
of  depicting  external  forms,  and  of  availing  himself  of 
the  use  of  fire. 

Shell-mounds,  consisting  of  bones  and  shells,  some 
of  which  may  be  justly  described  as  of  vast  extent,  and 
of  a  date  anterior  to  the  Bronze  age,  and  full  of  stone 
implements,  bear  in  all  their  parts  indications  of  the  use 
of  fire.  These  are  often  adjacent  to  the  existing  coasts; 
sometimes,  however,  they  are  far  inland,  in  certain  in- 
stances as  far  as  fifty  miles.  Their  contents  and  posi- 
tion indicate  for  them  a  date  posterior  to  that  of  the 
great  extinct  mammals,  but  prior  to  the  domesticated. 


ANTIQUITY  OP  MAN.  199 

Some  of  these,  it  is  said,  cannot  be  less  than  one  hun- 
dred thousand  years  old. 

The  lake-dwellings  in  Switzerland — huts  built  on 
piles  or  logs,  wattled  with  boughs — were,  as  may  be  in- 
ferred from  the  accompanying  implements,  begun  in  the 
Stone  age,  and  continued  into  that  of  Bronze.  In  the 
latter  period  the  evidences  become  numerous  of  the 
adoption  of  an  agricultural  life. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  periods  into  which 
geologists  have  found  it  convenient  to  divide  the  prog- 
ress of  man  in  civilization  are  abrupt  epochs,  which 
hold  good  simultaneously  for  the  whole  human  race. 
Thus  the  wandering  Indians  of  America  are  only  at  the 
present  moment  emerging  from  the  Stone  age.  They 
are  still  to  be  seen  in  many  places  armed  with  arrows, 
tipped  with  flakes  of  flint.  It  is  but  as  yesterday  that 
some  have  obtained,  from  the  white  man,  iron,  fire-arms, 
and  the  horse. 

So  far  as  investigations  have  gone,  they  indisputably 
refer  the  existence  of  man  to  a  date  remote  from  us 
by  many  hundreds  of  thousands  of  years.  It  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  these  investigations  are  quite  recent, 
and  confined  to  a  very  limited  geographical  space.  No 
researches  have  yet  been  made  in  those  regions  which 
might  reasonably  be  regarded  as  the  primitive  habitat 
of  man. 

We  are  thus  carried  back  immeasurably  beyond  the 
six  thousand  years  of  Patristic  chronology.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  assign  a  shorter  date  for  the  last  glaciation  of 
Europe  than  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  years,  and  human 
existence  antedates  that.  But  not  only  is  it  this  grand 
fact  that  confronts  us,  we  have  to  admit  also  a  primitive 
animalized  state,  and  a  slow,  a  gradual  development. 

But  this  forlorn,  this  savage  condition  of  humanity 


200  AGE  OF  THE  EARTH. 

is  in  strong  contrast  to  the  paradisiacal  happiness  of  the 
garden  of  Eden,  and,  what  is  far  more  serious,  it  is  in- 
consistent with  the  theory  of  the  Fall. 

I  have  been  induced  to  place  the  subject  of  this 
chapter  out  of  its  proper  chronological  order,  for  the 
sake  of  presenting  what  I  had  to  say  respecting  the  na- 
ture of  the  world  more  completely  by  itself.  The  dis- 
cussions that  arose  as  to  the  age  of  the  earth  were  long 
after  the  conflict  as  to  the  criterion  of  truth — that  is, 
after  the  Reformation;  indeed,  they  were  substantially 
included  .in  the  present  century.  They  have  been  con- 
ducted with  so  much  moderation  as  to  justify  the  term 
I  have  used  in  the  title  of  this  chapter,  "  Controversy," 
rather  than  "  Conflict."  Geology  has  not  had  to  en- 
counter the  vindictive  opposition  with  which  astronomy 
was  assailed,  and,  though,  on  her  part,  she  has  insisted 
on  a  concession  of  great  antiquity  for  the  earth,  she  has 
herself  pointed  out  the  unreliability  of  all  numerical 
estimates  thus  far  offered.  The  attentive  reader  of  this 
chapter  cannot  have  failed  to  observe  inconsistencies  in 
the  numbers  quoted.  Though  wanting  the  merit  of  ex- 
actness, those  numbers,  however,  justify  the  claim  of 
vast  antiquity,  and  draw  us  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
time-scale  of  the  world  answers  to  the  space-scale  in 
magnitude. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

CONFLICT   RESPECTING  THE   CRITERION  OF  TRUTH. 

Ancient  philosophy  declares  that  man  has  no  means  of  ascertain- 
ing the  truth. 

Differences  of  'belief  arise  among  the  early  Christians. — An  inef- 
fectual attempt  is  made  to  remedy  them  by  Councils. — Miracle 
and  ordeal  proof  introduced. 

The  papacy  resorts  to  auricular  confession  and  the  Inquisition. — 
It  perpetrates  frightful  atrocities  for  the  suppression  of  dif- 
ferences of  opinion. 

Effect  of  the  discovery  of  the  Pandects  of  Justinian  and  develop- 
ment of  the  canon  law  on  the  nature  of  evidence. — It  becomes 
more  scientific. 

The  Reformation  establishes  the  rights  of  individual  reason. — 
Catholicism  asserts  that  the  criterion  of  truth  is  in  the 
Church. — It  restrains  the  reading  of  books  by  the  Index  Ex- 
purgatorius,  and  combats  dissent  by  such  means  as  the  mas- 
sacre of  St.  Bartholomew's  Eve. 

Examination  of  the  authenticity  of  the  Pentateuch  as  the  Prot- 
estant criterion. — Spurious  character  of  those  books. 

For  Science  the  criterion  of  truth  is  to  be  found  in  the  revelations 
of  Nature ;  for  the  Protestant,  it  is  in  the  Scriptures;  for 
the  Catholic,  in  an  infallible  Pope. 

"  WHAT  is  truth?  "  was  the  passionate  demand  of  a 
Roman  procurator  on  one  of  the  most  momentous  occa- 
sions in  history.  And  the  Divine  Person  who  stood 
before  him,  to  whom  the  interrogation  was  addressed, 
made  no  reply — unless,  indeed,  silence  contained  the 
reply. 

Often  and  vainly  had  that  demand  been  made  before 
201 


202  T1IE  CRITERION  OP  TRUTH. 

— often  and  vainly  has  it  been  made  since.    No  one  has 
yet  given  a  satisfactory  answer. 

When,  at  the  dawn  of  science  in  Greece,  the  ancient 
religion  was  disappearing  like  a  mist  at  sunrise,  the 
pious  and  thoughtful  men  of  that  country  were  thrown 
into  a  condition  of  intellectual  despair.  Anaxagoras 
plaintively  exclaims,  "  Nothing  can  be  known,  nothing 
can  be  learned,  nothing  can  be  certain,  sense  is  limited, 
intellect  is  weak,  life  is  short."  Xenophanes  tells  us 
that  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  be  certain  even  when  we 
utter  the  truth.  Parmenides  declares  that  the  very  con- 
stitution of  man  prevents  him  from  ascertaining  abso- 
lute truth.  Empedocles  affirms  that  all  philosophical 
and  religious  systems  must  be  unreliable,  because  we 
have  no  criterion  by  which  to  test  them.  Democritus 
asserts  that  even  things  that  are  true  cannot  impart  cer- 
tainty to  us;  that  the  final  result  of  human  inquiry  is 
the  discovery  that  man  is  incapable  of  absolute  knowl- 
edge; that,  even  if  the  truth  be  in  his  possession,  he 
cannot  be  certain  of  it.  Pyrrho  bids  us  reflect  on  the 
necessity  of  suspending  our  judgment  of  things,  since 
we  have  no  criterion  of  truth;  so  deep  a  distrust  did  he 
impart  to  his  followers,  that  they  were  in  the  habit  of 
saying,  "  We  assert  nothing;  no,  not  even  that  we  assert 
nothing."  Epicurus  taught  his  disciples  that  truth 
can  never  be  determined  by  reason.  Arcesilaus,  deny- 
ing both  intellectual  and  sensuous  knowledge,  publicly 
avowed  that  he  knew  nothing,  not  even  his  own  igno- 
rance! The  general  conclusion  to  which  Greek  philoso- 
phy came  was  this:  that,  in  view  of  the  contradiction  of 
the  evidence  of  the  senses,  we  cannot  distinguish  the 
true  from  the  false;  and  such  is  the  imperfection  of  rea- 
son, that  we  cannot  affirm  the  correctness  of  any  philo- 
sophical deduction. 


THE  CRITERION  OP  TRUTH.  203 

It  might  be  supposed  that  a  revelation  from  God  to 
man  would  come  with  such  force  and  clearness  as  to 
settle  all  uncertainties  and  overwhelm  all  opposition. 
A  Greek  philosopher,  less  despairing  than  others,  had 
ventured  to  affirm  that  the  coexistence  of  two  forms  of 
faith,  both  claiming  to  be  revealed  by  the  omnipotent 
God,  proves  that  neither  of  them  is  true.  But  let  us 
remember  that  it  is  difficult  for  men  to  come  to  the 
same  conclusion  as  regards  even  material  and  visible 
things,  unless  they  stand  at  the  same  point  of  view.  If 
discord  and  distrust  were  the  condition  of  philosophy 
three  hundred  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ,  discord 
and  distrust  were  the  condition  of  religion  three  hun- 
dred years  after  his  death.  This  is  what  Hilary,  the 
Bishop  of  Poictiers,  in  his  well-known  passage  written 
about  the  time  of  the  Nicene  Council,  says: 

"  It  is  a  thing  equally  deplorable  and  dangerous  that 
there  are  as  many  creeds  as  opinions  among  men,  as 
many  doctrines  and  inclinations,  and  as  many  sources  of 
blasphemy  as  there  are  faults  among  us,  because  we 
make  creeds  arbitrarily  and  explain  them  as  arbitrarily. 
Every  year,  nay,  every  moon,  we  make  new  creeds  to 
describe  invisible  mysteries;  we  repent  of  what  we 
have  done;  we  defend  those  who  repent;  we  anathe- 
matize those  whom  we  defend;  we  condemn  either  the 
doctrines  of  others  in  ourselves,  or  our  own  in  that  of 
others;  and,  reciprocally  tearing  each  other  to  pieces, 
we  have  been  the  cause  of  each  other's  ruin." 

These  are  not  mere  words;  but  the  import  of  this 
self-accusation  can  be  realized  fully  only  by  such  as  are 
familiar  with  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  those  times. 
As  soon  as  the  first  fervor  of  Christianity  as  a  sys- 
tem of  benevolence  had  declined,  dissensions  appeared. 
Ecclesiastical  historians  assert  that  "  as  early  as  the  sec- 


204  EARLY  CHRISTIAN  COUNCILS. 

ond  century  began  the  contest  between  faith  and  rea- 
son, religion  and  philosophy,  piety  and  genius."  To 
compose  these  dissensions,  to  obtain  some  authoritative 
expression,  some  criterion  of  truth,  assemblies  for  con- 
sultation were  resorted  to,  which  eventually  took  the 
form  of  councils.  For  a  long  time  they  had  nothing 
more  than  an  advisory  authority;  but  when,  in  the 
fourth  century,  Christianity  had  attained  to  imperial 
rule,  their  dictates  became  compulsory,  being  enforced 
by  the  civil  power.  By  this  the  whole  face  of  the 
Church  was  changed.  (Ecumenical  councils — parlia- 
ments of  Christianity — consisting  of  delegates  from  all 
the  churches  in  the  world,  were  summoned  by  the  au- 
thority of  the  emperor;  he  presided  either  personally 
or  nominally  in  them — composed  all  differences,  and 
was,  in  fact,  the  Pope  of  Christendom.  Mosheim,  the 
historian,  to  whom  I  have  more  particularly  referred 
above,  speaking  of  these  times,  remarks  that  "  there 
was  nothing  to  exclude  the  ignorant  from  ecclesiastical 
preferment;  the  savage  and  illiterate  party,  who  looked 
on  all  kinds  of  learning,  particularly  philosophy,  as  per- 
nicious to  piety,  was  increasing; "  and,  accordingly,"  the 
disputes  carried  on  in  the  Council  of  Nicea  offered  a  re- 
markable example  of  the  greatest  ignorance  and  utter 
confusion  of  ideas,  particularly  in  the  language  and  ex- 
planations of  those  who  approved  of  the  decisions  of 
that  council."  Vast  as  its  influence  has  been,  "  the 
ancient  critics  are  neither  agreed  concerning  the  time 
nor  place  in  which  it  was  assembled,  the  number  of 
those  who  sat  in  it,  nor  the  bishop  who  presided.  No 
authentic  acts  of  its  famous  sentence  have  been  com- 
mitted to  writing,  or,  at  least,  none  have  been  trans- 
mitted to  our  times."  The  Church  had  now  become 
what,  in  the  language  of  modern  politicians,  would  be 


THE  COUNCIL  OF  NICEA.  205 

called  "  a  confederated  republic."  The  will  of  the  coun- 
cil was  determined  by  a  majority  vote,  and,  to  secure 
that,  all  manner  of  intrigues  and  impositions  were  re- 
sorted to;  the  influence  of  court  females,  bribery,  and 
violence,  were  not  spared.  The  Council  of  Mcca  had 
scarcely  adjourned,  when  it  was  plain  to  all  impartial 
men  that,  as  a  method  of  establishing  a  criterion  of  truth 
in  religious  matters,  such  councils  were  a  total  failure. 
The  minority  had  no  rights  which  the  majority  need  re- 
spect. The  protest  of  many  good  men,  that  a  mere  ma- 
jority vote  given  by  delegates,  whose  right  to  vote  had 
never  been  examined  and  authorized,  could  not  be  re- 
ceived as  ascertaining  absolute  truth,  was  passed  over 
with  contempt,  and  the  consequence  was,  that  council 
was  assembled  against  council,  and  their  jarring  and 
contradictory  decrees  spread  perplexity  and  confusion 
throughout  the  Christian  world.  In  the  fourth  century 
alone  there  were  thirteen  councils  adverse  to  Arius,  fif- 
teen in  his  favor,  and  seventeen  for  the  semi-Arians — 
in  all,  forty-five.  Minorities  were  perpetually  attempt- 
ing to  use  the  weapon  which  majorities  had  abused. 

The  impartial  ecclesiastical  historian  above  quoted, 
moreover,  says  that  "  two  monstrous  and  calamitous 
errors  were  adopted  in  this  fourth  century:  1.  That  it 
was  an  act  of  virtue  to  deceive  and  lie  when,  by  that 
means,  the  interests  of  the  Church  might  be  promoted. 
2.  That  errors  in  religion,  when  maintained  and  ad- 
hered to  after  proper  admonition,  were  punishable  with 
civil  penalties  and  corporal  tortures." 

Not  without  astonishment  can  we  look  back  at  what, 
in  those  times,  were  popularly  regarded  as  criteria  of 
truth.  Doctrines  were  considered  as  established  by  the 
number  of  martyrs  who  had  professed  them,  by  mira- 
cles, by  the  confession  of  demons,  of  lunatics,  or  of  per- 


206          TRUTH   DETERMINED  BY   MIRACLES. 

sons  possessed  of  evil  spirits:  thus,  St;  Ambrose,  in  his 
disputes  with  the  Arians,  produced  men  possessed  by 
devils,  who,  on  the  approach  of  the  relics  of  certain 
martyrs,  acknowledged,  with  loud  cries,  that  the  Nicean 
doctrine  of  the  three  persons  of  the  Godhead  was  true. 
But  the  Arians  charged  him  with  suborning  these  infer- 
nal witnesses  with  a  weighty  bribe.  Already,  ordeal 
tribunals  were  making  their  appearance.  During  the 
following  six  centuries  they  were  held  as  a  final  resort 
for  establishing  guilt  or  innocence,  under  the  forms  of 
trial  by  cold  water,  by  duel,  by  the  fire,  by  the  cross. 

What  an  utter  ignorance  of  the  nature  of  evidence 
and  its  laws  have  we  here!  An  accused  man  sinks  or 
swims  when  thrown  into  a  pond  of  water;  he  is  burnt 
or  escapes  unharmed  when  he  holds  a  piece  of  red-hot 
iron  in  his  hand;  a  champion  whom  he  has  hired  is  van- 
quished or  vanquishes  in  single  fight;  he  can  keep  his 
arms  outstretched  like  a  cross,  or  fails  to  do  so  longer 
than  his  accuser,  and  his  innocence  or  guilt  of  some  im- 
puted crime  is  established!  Are  these  criteria  of  truth? 

Is  it  surprising  that  all  Europe  was  filled  with  im- 
posture miracles  during  those  ages? — miracles  that  are 
a  disgrace  to  the  common-sense  of  man! 

But  the  inevitable  day  came  at  length.  Assertions 
and  doctrines  based  upon  such  preposterous  evidence 
were  involved  in  the  discredit  that  fell  upon  the  evi- 
dence itself.  As  the  thirteenth  century  is  approached, 
we  find  unbelief  in  all  directions  setting  in.  First,  it  is 
plainly  seen  among  the  monastic  orders,  then  it  spreads 
rapidly  among  the  common  people.  Books,  such  as 
"  The  Everlasting  Gospel,"  appear  among  the  former; 
sects,  such  as  the  Catharists,  Waldenses,  Petrobrussians, 
arise  among  the  latter.  They  agreed  in  this,  "  that 
the  public  and  established  religion  was  a  motley  system 


AURICULAR  CONFESSION  AND  THE  INQUISITION.  207 

of  errors  and  superstitions,  and  that  the  dominion  which 
the  pope  had  usurped  over  Christians  was  unlawful  and 
tyrannical;  that  the  claim  put  forth  by  Home,  that  the 
Bishop  of  Borne  is  the  supreme  lord  of  the  universe, 
and  that  neither  princes  nor  bishops,  civil  governors  nor 
ecclesiastical  rulers,  have  any  lawful  power  in  church  or 
state  but  what  they  receive  from  him,  is  utterly  with- 
out foundation,  and  a  usurpation  of  the  rights  of 
man." 

To  withstand  this  flood  of  impiety,  the  papal  gov- 
ernment established  two  institutions:  1.  The  Inquisi- 
tion; 2.  Auricular  confession — the  latter  as  a  means  of 
detection,  the  former  as  a  tribunal  for  punishment. 

In  general  terms,  the  commission  of  the  Inquisition 
was,  to  extirpate  religious  dissent  by  terrorism,  and  sur- 
round heresy  with  the  most  horrible  associations;  this 
necessarily  implied  the  power  of  determining  what  con- 
stitutes heresy.  The  criterion  of  truth  was  thus  in  pos- 
session of  this  tribunal,  which  was  charged  "  to  discover 
and  bring  to  judgment  heretics  lurking  in  towns,  houses, 
cellars,  woods,  caves,  and  fields."  With  such  savage 
alacrity  did  it  carry  out  its  object  of  protecting  the  in- 
terests of  religion,  that  between  1481  and  1808  it  had 
punished  three  hundred  and  forty  thousand  persons,  and 
of  these  nearly  thirty-two  thousand  had  been  burnt! 
In  its  earlier  days,  when  public  opinion  could  find  no 
means  of  protesting  against  its  atrocities,  "  it  often  put 
to  death,  without  appeal,  on  the  very  day  that  they 
were  accused,  nobles,  clerks,  monks,  hermits,  and  lay 
persons  of  every  rank."  In  whatever  direction  thought- 
ful men  looked,  the  air  was  full  of  fearful  shadows.  No 
one  could  indulge  in  freedom  of  thought  without  ex- 
pecting punishment.  So  dreadful  were  the  proceedings 
of  the  Inquisition,  that  the  exclamation  of  Pagliarici 


208  THE  INQUISITION. 

was  the  exclamation  of  thousands:  "  It  is  hardly  possi- 
ble for  a  man  to  be  a  Christian,  and  die  in  his  bed." 

The  Inquisition  destroyed  the  sectaries  of  Southern 
France  in  the  thirteenth  century.  Its  unscrupulous 
atrocities  extirpated  Protestantism  in  Italy  and  Spain. 
Nor  did  it  confine  itself  to  religious  affairs;  it  engaged 
in  the  suppression  of  political  discontent.  Nicolas 
Eymeric,  who  was  inquisitor-general  of  the  kingdom  of 
Aragon  for  nearly  fifty  years,  and  who  died  in  1399, 
has  left  a  frightful  statement  of  its  conduct  and  appall- 
ing cruelties  in  his  "  Directorium  Inquisitorum." 

This  disgrace  of  Christianity,  and  indeed  of  the 
human  race,  had  different  constitutions  in  different 
countries.  The  papal  Inquisition  continued  the  tyran- 
ny, and  eventually  superseded  the  old  episcopal  inqui- 
sitions. The  authority  of  the  bishops  was  unceremo- 
niously put  aside  by  the  officers  of  the  pope. 

By  the  action  of  the  fourth  Lateran  Council,  A.  D. 
1215,  the  power  of  the  Inquisition  was  frightfully  in- 
creased, the  necessity  of  private  confession  to  a  priest — 
auricular  confession — being  at  that  time  formally  estab- 
lished. This,  so  far  as  domestic  life  was  concerned, 
gave  omnipresence  and  omniscience  to  the  Inquisition. 
Not  a  man  was  safe.  In  the  hands  of  the  priest,  who,  at 
the  confessional,  could  extract  or  extort  from  them  their 
most  secret  thoughts,  his  wife  and  his  servants  were 
turned  into  spies.  Summoned  before  the  dread  tribu- 
nal, he  was  simply  informed  that  he  lay  under  strong 
suspicions  of  heresy.  No  accuser  was  named;  but  the 
thumb-screw,  the  stretching-rope,  the  boot  and  wedge, 
or  other  enginery  of  torture,  soon  supplied  that  defect, 
and,  innocent  or  guilty,  he  accused  himself! 

Notwithstanding  all  this  power,  the  Inquisition  failed 
of  its  purpose.  When  the  heretic  could  no  longer  con- 


EFFECTS  OF   THE  INQUISITION.  209 

front  it,  he  evaded  it.  A  dismal  disbelief  stealthily  per- 
vaded all  Europe — a  denial  of  Providence,  of  the  im- 
mortality of  the  soul,  of  human  free-will,  and  that  man 
can  possibly  resist  the  absolute  necessity,  the  destiny 
which  envelops  him.  Ideas  such  as  these  were  cher- 
ished in  silence  by  multitudes  of  persons  driven  to  them 
by  the  tyrannical  acts  of  ecclesiasticism.  In  spite  of 
persecution,  the  Waldenses  still  survived  to  propagate 
their  declaration  that  the  Roman  Church,  since  Con- 
stantine,  had  degenerated  from  its  purity  and  sanctity; 
to  protest  against  the  sale  of  indulgences,  which  they 
said  had  nearly  abolished  prayer,  fasting,  alms;  to  affirm 
that  it  was  utterly  useless  to  pray  for  the  souls  of  the 
dead,  since  they  must  already  have  gone  either  to  heaven 
or  hell.  Though  it  was  generally  believed  that  philos- 
ophy or  science  was  pernicious  to  the  interests  of  Chris- 
tianity or  pure  piety,  the  Mohammedan  literature  then 
prevailing  in  Spain  was  making  converts  among  all 
classes  of  society.  We  see  very  plainly  its  influence  in 
many  of  the  sects  that  then  arose;  thus,  "  the  Brethren 
and  Sisters  of  the  Free  Spirit "  held  that  "  the  universe 
came  by  emanation  from  God,  and  would  finally  return 
to  him  by  absorption;  that  rational  souls  are  so  many 
portions  of  the  Supreme  Deity;  and  that  the  universe, 
considered  as  one  great  whole,  is  God/'  These  are 
ideas  that  can  only  be  entertained  in  an  advanced  intel- 
lectual condition.  Of  this  sect  it  is  said  that  many 
suffered  burning  with  unclouded  serenity,  with  trium- 
phant feelings  of  cheerfulness  and  joy.  Their  orthodox 
enemies  accused  them  of  gratifying  their  passions  at 
midnight  assemblages  in  darkened  rooms,  to  which  both 
sexes  in  a  condition  of  nudity  repaired.  A  similar  accu- 
sation, as  is  well  known,  was  brought  against  the  primi- 
tive Christians  by  the  fashionable  society  of  Eome. 


210  TOE  PANDECTS  OP  JUSTINIAN. 

The  influences  of  the  Averroistic  philosophy  were 
apparent  in  many  of  these  sects.  That  Mohammedan 
system,  considered  from  a  Christian  point  of  view,  led 
to  the  heretical  belief  that  the  end  of  the  precepts  of 
Christianity  is  the  union  of  the  soul  with  the  Supreme 
Being;  that  God  and  Nature  have  the  same  relations 
to  each  other  as  the  soul  and  the  body;  that  there  is 
but  one  individual  intelligence;  and  that  one  soul  per- 
forms all  the  spiritual  and  rational  functions  in  all  the 
human  race.  When,  subsequently,  toward  the  time  of 
the  Reformation,  the  Italian  Averroists  were  required  by 
the  Inquisition  to  give  an  account  of  themselves,  they 
attempted  to  show  that  there  is  a  wide  distinction  be- 
tween philosophical  and  religious  truth;  that  things 
may  be  philosophically  true  and  yet  theologically  false 
— an  exculpatory  device  condemned  at  length  by  the 
Lateran  Council  in  the  time  of  Leo  X. 

But,  in  spite  of  auricular  confession,  and  the  Inqui- 
sition, these  heretical  tendencies  survived.  It  has  been 
truly  said  that,  at  the  epoch  of  the  Reformation,  there 
lay  concealed,  in  many  parts  of  Europe,  persons  who  en- 
tertained the  most  virulent  enmity  against  Christianity. 
In  this  pernicious  class  were  many  Aristotelians,  such 
as  Pomponatius;  many  philosophers  and  wits,  such  as 
Bodin,  Rabelais,  Montaigne;  many  Italians,  as  Leo  X., 
Bembo,  Bruno. 

Miracle-evidence  began  to  fall  into  discredit  during 
the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries.  The  sarcasms  of 
the  Hispano-Moorish  philosophers  had  forcibly  drawn 
the  attention  of  many  of  the  more  enlightened  eccle- 
siastics to  its  illusory  nature.  The  discovery  of  the 
Pandects  of  Justinian,  at  Amalfi,  in  1130,  doubtless 
exerted  a  very  powerful  influence  in  promoting  the 
study  of  Roman  jurisprudence,  and  disseminating  better 


THE  DECRETALS.  211 

notions  as  to  the  character  of  legal  or  philosophical  evi- 
dence. Hallam  has  cast  some  doubt  on  the  well-known 
story  of  this  discovery,  but  he  admits  that  the  celebrated 
copy  in  the  Laurentian  library,  at  Florence,  is  the  only 
one  containing  the  entire  fifty  books.  Twenty  years 
subsequently,  the  monk  Gratian  collected  together  the 
various  papal  edicts,  the  canons  of  councils,  the  dec- 
larations of  the  Fathers  and  Doctors  of  the  Church,  in 
a  volume  called  "  The  Decretum,"  considered  as  the 
earliest  authority  in  canon  law.  In  the  next  century 
Gregory  IX.  published  five  books  of  Decretals,  and 
Boniface  VIII.  subsequently  added  a  sixth.  To  these 
followed  the  Clementine  Constitutions,  a  seventh  book 
of  Decretals,  and  "  A  Book  of  Institutes,"  published  to- 
gether, by  Gregory  XIII.,  in  1580,  under  the  title  of 
"  Corpus  Juris  Canonici."  The  canon  law  had  grad- 
ually gained  enormous  power  through  the  control  it  had 
obtained  over  wills,  the  guardianship  of  orphans,  mar- 
riages, and  divorces. 

The  rejection  of  miracle-evidence,  and  the  substitu- 
tion of  legal  evidence  in  its  stead,  accelerated  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Eeformation.  No  longer  was  it  possible 
to  admit  the  requirement,  which  in  former  days  An- 
selm,  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  in  his  treatise, 
"  Cur  Deus  Homo,"  had  enforced,  that  we  must  first 
believe  without  examination,  and  may  afterward  en- 
deavor to  understand  what  we  have  thus  believed. 
When  Cajetan  said  to  Luther,  "  Thou  must  believe 
that  one  single  drop  of  Christ's  blood  is  sufficient  to 
redeem  the  whole  human  race,  and  the  remaining  quan- 
tity that  was  shed  in  the  garden  and  on  the  cross  was 
left  as  a  legacy  to  the  pope,  to  be  a  treasure  from  which 
indulgences  were  to  be  drawn,"  the  soul  of  the  sturdy 
German  monk  revolted  against  such  a  monstrous  asser- 


212  THE  REFORMATION. 

tion,  nor  would  he  have  believed  it  though  a  thousand 
miracles  had  been  worked  in  its  support.  This  shameful 
practice  of  selling  indulgences  for  the  commission  of  sin 
originated  among  the  bishops,  who,  when  they  had  need 
of  money  for  their  private  pleasures,  obtained  it  in  that 
way.  Abbots  and  monks,  to  whom  this  gainful  com- 
merce was  denied,  raised  funds  by  carrying  about  relics 
in  solemn  procession,  and  charging  a  fee  for  touching 
them.  The  popes,  in  their  pecuniary  straits,  perceiving 
how  lucrative  the  practice  might  become,  deprived  the 
bishops  of  the  right  of  making  such  sales,  and  appro- 
priated it  to  themselves,  established  agencies,  chiefly 
among  the  mendicant  orders,  for  the  traffic.  Among 
these  orders  there  was  a  sharp  competition,  each  boast- 
ing of  the  superior  value  of  its  indulgences  through  its 
greater  influence  at  the  court  of  heaven,  its  familiar 
connection  with  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  saints  in 
glory.  Even  against  Luther  himself,  who  had  been  an 
Augustinian  monk,  a  calumny  was  circulated  that  he 
was  first  alienated  from  the  Church  by  a  traffic  of  this 
kind  having  been  conferred  on  the  Dominicans,  instead 
of  on  his  own  order,  at  the  time  when  Leo  X.  was  rais- 
ing funds  by  this  means  for  building  St.  Peter's,  at 
Rome,  A.  D.  1517;  and  there  is  reason  to  think  that 
Leo  himself,  in  the  earlier  stages  of  the  Reformation, 
attached  weight  to  that  allegation. 

Indulgences  were  thus  the  immediate  inciting  cause 
of  the  Reformation,  but  very  soon  there  came  into  light 
the  real  principle  that  was  animating  the  controversy. 
It  lay  in  the  question,  Does  the  Bible  owe  its  authen- 
ticity to  the  Church?  or  does  the  Church  owe  her  au- 
thenticity to  the  Bible?  Where  is  the  criterion  of 
truth? 

It  is  not  necessary  for  me  here  to  relate  the  well- 


THE  REFORMATION.  213 

known  particulars  of  that  controversy,  the  desolating 
wars  and  scenes  of  blood  to  which  it  gave  rise:  how 
Luther  posted  on  the  door  of  the  cathedral  of  Witten- 
berg ninety-five  theses,  and  was  summoned  to  Rome  to 
answer  for  his  offense;  how  he  appealed  from  the  pope, 
ill  informed  at  the  time,  to  the  pope  when  he  should 
have  been  better  instructed;  how  he  was  condemned  as 
a  heretic,  and  thereupon  appealed  to  a  general  council; 
how,  through  the  disputes  about  purgatory,  transubstan- 
tiation,  auricular  confession,  absolution,  the  fundamental 
idea  which  lay  at  the  bottom  of  the  whole  movement 
came  into  relief,  the  right  of  individual  judgment;  how 
Luther  was  now  excommunicated,  A.  D.  1520,  and  in  de- 
fiance burnt  the  bull  of  excommunication  and  the  vol- 
umes of  the  canon  law,  which  he  denounced  as  aiming 
at  the  subversion  of  all  civil  government,  and  the  .exalta- 
tion of  the  papacy;  how  by  this  skillful  manceuvre  he 
brought  over  many  of  the  German  princes  to  his  views; 
how,  summoned  before  the  Imperial  Diet  at  Worms,  he 
refused  to  retract,  and,  while  he  was  hidden  in  the  castle 
of  Wartburg,  his  doctrines  were  spreading,  and  a  ref- 
ormation under  Zwingli  broke  out  in  Switzerland;  how 
the  principle  of  sectarian  decomposition  embedded  in 
the  movement  gave  rise  to  rivalries  and  dissensions  be- 
tween the  Germans  and  the  Swiss,  and  even  divided 
the  latter  among  themselves  under  the  leadership  of 
Zwingli  and  of  Calvin;  how  the  Conference  of  Marburg, 
the  Diet  of  Spires,  and  that  at  Augsburg,  failed  to  com- 
pose the  troubles,  and  eventually  the  German  Reforma- 
tion assumed  a  political  organization  at  Smalcalde. 
The  quarrels  between  the  Lutherans  and  the  Calvinists 
gave  hopes  to  Rome  that  she  might  recover  her  losses. 

Leo  was  not  slow  to  discern  that  the  Lutheran  Ref- 
ormation was  something  more  serious  than  a  squabble 
16 


THE  REFORMATION. 

among  some  monks  about  the  profits  of  indulgence-sales, 
and  the  papacy  set  itself  seriously  at  work  to  overcome 
the  revolters.  It  instigated  the  frightful  wars  that  for 
so  many  years  desolated  Europe,  and  left  animosities 
which  neither  the  Treaty  of  Westphalia,  nor  the  Council 
of  Trent  after  eighteen  years  of  debate,  could  compose. 
No  one  can  read  without  a  shudder  the  attempts  that 
were  made  to  extend  the  Inquisition  in  foreign  coun- 
tries. All  Europe,  Catholic  and  Protestant,  was  horror- 
stricken  at  the  Huguenot  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew*! 
Eve  (A.  D.  1572).  For  perfidy  and  atrocity  it  has  no 
equal  in  the  annals  of  the  world. 

The  desperate  attempt  in  which  the  papacy  had  been 
engaged  to  put  down  its  opponents  by  instigating  civil 
wars,  massacres,  and  assassinations,  proved  to  be  alto- 
gether abortive.  Nor  had  the  Council  of  Trent  any 
better  result.  Ostensibly  summoned  to  correct,  illus- 
trate, and  fix  with  perspicacity  the  doctrine  of  the 
Church,  to  restore  the  vigor  of  its  discipline,  and  to  re- 
form the  lives  of  its  ministers,  it  was  so  manipulated 
that  a  large  majority  of  its  members  were  Italians,  and 
under  the  influence  of  the  pope.  Hence  the  Protestants 
could  not  possibly  accept  its  decisions. 

The  issue  of  the  Reformation  was  the  acceptance  by 
all  the  Protestant  Churches  of  the  dogma  that  the  Bible 
is  a  sufficient  guide  for  every  Christian  man.  Tradition 
was  rejected,  and  the  right  of  private  interpretation  as- 
sured. It  was  thought  that  the  criterion  of  truth  had 
at  length  been  obtained. 

The  authority  thus  imputed  to  the  Scriptures  was 
not  restricted  to  matters  of  a  purely  religious  or  moral 
kind;  it  extended  over  philosophical  facts  and  to  the 
interpretation  of  Nature.  Many  went  as  far  as  in  the 
old  times  Epiphanius  had  done:  he  believed  that  the 


LUTHER.  215 

Bible  contained  a  complete  system  of  mineralogy!  The 
Keformers  would  tolerate  no  science  that  was  not  in 
accordance  with  Genesis.  Among  them  there  were 
many  who  maintained  that  religion  and  piety  could 
never  nourish  unless  separated  from  learning  and  sci- 
ence. The  fatal  maxim  that  the  Bible  contained  the 
sum  and  substance  of  all  knowledge,  useful  or  pos- 
sible to  man — a  maxim  employed  with  such  pernicious 
effect  of  old  by  Tertullian  and  by  St.  Augustine,  and 
which  had  so  often  been  enforced  by  papal  authority — 
was  still  strictly  insisted  upon.  The  leaders  of  the  Eef- 
ormation,  Luther  and  Melanchthon,  were  determined 
to  banish  philosophy  from  the  Church.  Luther  declared 
that  the  study  of  Aristotle  is  wholly  useless;  his  vilifi- 
cation of  that  Greek  philosopher  knew  no  bounds.  He 
is,  says  Luther,  "truly  a  devil,  a  horrid  calumniator, 
a  wicked  sycophant,  a  prince  of  darkness,  a  real  Apol- 
lyon,  a  beast,  a  most  horrid  impostor  on  mankind,  one 
in  whom  there  is  scarcely  any  philosophy,  a  public  and 
professed  liar,  a  goat,  a  complete  epicure,  this  twice 
execrable  Aristotle."  The  schoolmen  were,  so  Luther 
said,  "  locusts,  caterpillars,  frogs,  lice."  He  entertained 
an  abhorrence  for  them.  These  opinions,  though  not 
so  emphatically  expressed,  were  entertained  by  Calvin. 
So  far  as  science  is-  concerned,  nothing  is  owed  to  the 
Eeformation.  The  Procrustean  bed  of  the  Pentateuch 
was  still  before  her. 

In  the  annals  of  Christianity  the  most  ill-omened 
day  is  that  in  which  she  separated  herself  from  science. 
She  compelled  Origen,  at  that  time  (A.  D.  231)  its  chief 
representative  and  supporter  in  the  Church,  to  aban- 
don his  charge  in  Alexandria,  and  retire  to  Caesarea. 
In  vain  through  many  subsequent  centuries  did  her 
leading  men  spend  themselves  in — as  the  phrase  then 


216  CALVIN. 

went — "  drawing  forth  the  internal  juice  and  marrow 
of  the  Scriptures  for  the  explaining  of  things."  Uni- 
versal history  from  the  third  to  the  sixteenth  century 
shows  with  what  result.  The  dark  ages  owe  their 
darkness  to  this  fatal  policy.  Here  and  there,  it  is 
true,  there  were  great  men,  such  as  Frederick  II.  and 
Alphonso  X.,  who,  standing  at  a  very  elevated  and  gen- 
eral point  of  view,  had  detected  the  value  of  learning  to 
civilization,  and,  in  the  midst  of  the  dreary  prospect 
that  ecclesiasticism  had  created  around  them,  had  rec- 
ognized that  science  alone  can  improve  the  social  con- 
dition of  man. 

The  infliction  of  the  death-punishment  for  difference 
of  opinion  was  still  resorted  to.  When  Calvin  caused 
Servetus  to  be  burnt  at  Geneva,  it  was  obvious  to  every 
one  that  the  spirit  of  persecution  was  unimpaired.  The 
offense  of  that  philosopher  lay  in  his  belief.  This  was, 
that  the  genuine  doctrines  of  Christianity  had  been  lost 
even  before  the  time  of  the  Council  of  Nicea;  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  animates  the  whole  system  of  Nature,  like 
a  soul  of  the  world,  and  that,  with  the  Christ,  it  will 
be  absorbed,  at  the  end  of  all  things,  into  the  substance 
of  the  Deity,  from  which  they  had  emanated.  For  this 
he  was  roasted  to  death  over  a  slow  fire.  Was  there 
any  distinction  between  this  Protestant  auto-da-fe  and 
the  Catholic  one  of  Vanini,  who  was  burnt  at  Tou- 
louse, by  the  Inquisition,  in  1629,  for  his  "  Dialogues 
concerning  Nature?  " 

The  invention  of  printing,  the  dissemination  of 
books,  had  introduced  a  class  of  dangers  which  the  per- 
secution of  the  Inquisition  could  not  reach.  In  1559, 
Pope  Paul  IV.  instituted  the  Congregation  of  the  In- 
dex Expurgatorius.  "  Its  duty  is  to  examine  books  and 
manuscripts  intended  for  publication,  and  to  decide 


THE  INDEX  EXPURGATORIUS.  217 

whether  the  people  may  be  permitted  to  read  them;  to 
correct  those  books  of  which  the  errors  are  not  nu- 
merous, and  which  contain  certain  useful  and  salutary 
truths,  so  as  to  bring  them  into  harmony  with  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Church;  to  condemn  those  of  which  the 
principles  are  heretical  and  pernicious;  and  to  grant 
the  peculiar  privilege  of  perusing  heretical  books  to  cer- 
tain persons.  This  congregation,  which  is  sometimes 
held  in  presence  of  the  pope,  but  generally  in  the  pal- 
ace of  the  Cardinal-president,  has  a  more  extensive 
jurisdiction  than  that  of  the  Inquisition,  as  it  not  only 
takes  cognizance  of  those  books  that  contain  doctrines 
contrary  to  the  Eoman  Catholic  faith,  but  of  those  that 
concern  the  duties  of  morality,  the  discipline  of  the 
Church,  the  interests  of  society.  Its  name  is  derived 
from  the  alphabetical  tables  or  indexes  of  heretical 
books  and  authors  composed  by  its  appointment." 

The  Index  Expurgatorius  of  prohibited  books  at 
first  indicated  those  works  which  it  was  unlawful  to 
read;  but,  on  this  being  found  insufficient,  whatever 
was  not  permitted  was  prohibited — an  audacious  at- 
tempt to  prevent  all  knowledge,  except  such  as  suited 
the  purposes  of  the  Church,  from  reaching  the  people. 

The  two  rival  divisions  of  the  Christian  Church — 
Protestant  and  Catholic — were  thus  in  accord  on  one 
point:  to  tolerate  no  science  except  such  as  they  con- 
sidered to  be  agreeable  to  the  Scriptures.  The  Catho- 
lic, being  in  possession  of  centralized  power,  could  make 
its  decisions  respected  wherever  its  sway  was  acknowl- 
edged, and  enforce  the  monitions  of  the  Index  Expurga- 
torius; the  Protestant,  whose  influence  was  diffused 
among  many  foci  in  different  nations,  could  not  act  in 
such  a  direct  and  resolute  manner.  Its  mode  of  pro- 
cedure was,  by  raising  a  theological  odium  against  an 


218  THE  SCRIPTURES  THE  STANDARD  OP  SCIENCE. 

offender,  to  put  him  under  a  social  ban — a  course  per- 
haps not  less  effectual  than  the  other. 

As  we  have  seen  in  former  chapters,  an  antagonism 
between  religion  and  science  had  existed  from  the  earli- 
est days  of  Christianity.  On  every  occasion  permitting 
its  display  it  may  be  detected  through  successive  centu- 
ries. We  witness  it  in  the  downfall  of  the  Alexandrian 
Museum,  in  the  cases  of  Erigena  and  Wiclif,  in  the  con- 
temptuous rejection  by  the  heretics  of  the  thirteenth 
century  of  the  Scriptural  account  of  the  Creation;  but 
it  was  not  until  the  epoch  of  Copernicus,  Kepler,  and 
Galileo,  that  the  efforts  of  Science  to  burst  from  the 
thraldom  in  which  she  was  fettered  became  uncontrol- 
lable. In  all  countries  the  political  power  of  the  Church 
had  greatly  declined;  her  leading  men  perceived  that 
the  cloudy  foundation  on  which  she  had  stood  was  dis- 
solving away.  Repressive  measures  against  her  antago- 
nists, in  old  times  resorted  to  with  effect,  could  be  no 
longer  advantageously  employed.  To  her  interests  the 
burning  of  a  philosopher  here  and  there  did  more  harm 
than  good.  In  her  great  conflict  with  astronomy,  a 
conflict  in  which  Galileo  stands  as  the  central  figure, 
she  received  an  utter  overthrow;  and,  as  we  have  seen, 
when  the  immortal  work  of  Newton  was  printed,  she 
could  offer  no  resistance,  though  Leibnitz  affirmed,  in 
the  face  of  Europe,  that  "  Newton  had  robbed  the  Deity 
of  some  of  his  most  excellent  attributes,  and  had  sapped 
the  foundation  of  natural  religion/' 

From  the  time  of  Newton  to  our  own  time,  the  di- 
vergence of  science  from  the  dogmas  of  the  Church  has 
continually  increased.  The  Church  declared  that  the 
earth  is  the  central  and  most  important  body  in  the 
universe;  that  the  sun  and  moon  and  stars  are  tribu- 
tary to  it.  On  these  points  she  was  worsted  by  astron- 


THE  PENTATEUCH.  219 

omy.  She  affirmed  that  a  universal  deluge  had  covered 
the  earth;  that  the  only  surviving  animals  were  such  as 
had  been  saved  in  an  ark.  In  this  her  error  was  estab- 
lished by  geology.  She  taught  that  there  was  a  first 
man,  who,  some  six  or  eight  thousand  years  ago,  was 
suddenly  created  or  called  into  existence  in  a  condition 
of  physical  and  moral  perfection,  and  from  that  condi- 
tion he  fell.  But  anthropology  has  shown  that  human 
beings  existed  far  back  in  geological  time,  and  in  a  sav- 
age state  but  little  better  than  that  of  the  brute. 

Many  good  and  well-meaning  men  have  attempted 
to  reconcile  the  statements  of  Genesis  with  the  discov- 
eries of  science,  but  it  is  in  vain.  The  divergence  has 
increased  so  much,  that  it  has  become  an  absolute  oppo- 
sition. One  of  the  antagonists  must  give  way. 

May  we  not,  then,  be  permitted  to  examine  the  au- 
thenticity of  this  book,  which,  since  the  second  century, 
has  been  put  forth  as  the  criterion  of  scientific  truth? 
To  maintain  itself  in  a  position  so  exalted,  it  must  chal- 
lenge human  criticism. 

In  the  early  Christian  ages,  many  of  the  most  emi- 
nent Fathers  of  the  Church  had  serious  doubts  respect- 
ing the  authorship  of  the  entire  Pentateuch.  I  have  not 
space,  in  the  limited  compass  of  these  pages,  to  present 
in  detail  the  facts  and  arguments  that  were  then  and 
have  since  been  adduced.  The  literature  of  the  subject 
is  now  very  extensive.  I  may,  however,  refer  the  read- 
er to  the  work  .of  the  pious  and  learned  Dean  Pri- 
deaux,  on  "  The  Old  and  New  Testament  connected,"  a 
work  which  is  one  of  the  literary  ornaments  of  the  last 
century.  He  will  also  find  the  subject  more  recently 
and  exhaustively  discussed  by  Bishop  Colenso.  The 
following  paragraphs  will  convey  a  sufficiently  distinct 
impression  of  the  present  state  of  the  controversy: 


220  THE  PENTATEUCH. 

The  Pentateuch  is  affirmed  to  have  been  written  by 
Moses,  under  the  influence  of  divine  inspiration.  Con- 
sidered thus,  as  a  record  vouchsafed  and  dictated  by  the 
Almighty,  it  commands  not  only  scientific  but  universal 
consent. 

But  here,  in  the  first  place,  it  may  be  demanded, 
Who  or  what  is  it  that  has  put  forth  this  great  claim  in 
its  behalf? 

Not  the  work  itself.  It  nowhere  claims  the  author- 
ship of  one  man,  or  makes  the  impious  declaration  that 
it  is  the  writing  of  Almighty  God. 

Not  until  after  the  second  century  was  there  any 
such  extravagant  demand  on  human  credulity.  It  ori- 
ginated not  among  the  higher  ranks  of  Christian  phi- 
losophers, but  among  the  more  fervid  Fathers  of  the 
Church,  whose  own  writings  prove  them  to  have  been 
unlearned  and  uncritical  persons. 

Every  age,  from  the  second  century  to  our  times,  has 
offered  men  of  great  ability,  both  Christian  and  Jewish, 
who  have  altogether  repudiated  these  claims.  Their  de- 
cision has  been  founded  upon  the  intrinsic  evidence  of 
the  books  themselves.  These  furnish  plain  indications 
of  at  least  two  distinct  authors,  who  have  been  respec- 
tively termed  Elohistic  and  Jehovistic.  Hupfeld  main- 
tains that  the  Jehovistic  narrative  bears  marks  of  hav- 
ing been  a  second  original  record,  wholly  independent 
of  the  Elohistic.  The  two  sources  from  which  the  nar- 
ratives have  been  derived  are,  in  many  respects,  contra- 
dictory of  each  other.  Moreover,  it  is  asserted  that 
the  books  of  the  Pentateuch  are  never  ascribed  to  Moses 
in  the  inscriptions  of  Hebrew  manuscripts,  or  in  printed 
copies  of  the  Hebrew  Bible,  nor  are  they  styled  "  Books 
of  Moses"  in  the  Septuagint  or  Vulgate,  but  only  in 
modern  translations. 


THE  PENTATEUCH.  221 

It  is  clear  that  they  cannot  be  imputed  to  the  sole 
authorship  of  Moses,  since  they  record  his  death.  It  is 
clear  that  they  were  not  written  until  many  hundred 
years  after  that  event,  since  they  contain  references  to 
facts  which  did  not  occur  until  after  the  establishment 
of  the  government  of  kings  among  the  Jews. 

No  man  may  dare  to  impute  them  to  the  inspiration 
of  Almighty  God — their  inconsistencies,  incongruities, 
contradictions,  and  impossibilities,  as  exposed  by  many 
learned  and  pious  moderns,  both  German  and  English, 
are  so  great.  It  is  the  decision  of  these  critics  that 
Genesis  is  a  narrative  based  upon  legends;  that  Exodus 
is  not  historically  true;  that  the  whole  Pentateuch  is 
unhistoric  and  non-Mosaic;  it  contains  the  most  extraor- 
dinary contradictions  and  impossibilities,  sufficient  to 
involve  the  credibility  of  the  whole — imperfections  so 
many  and  so  conspicuous  that  they  would  destroy  the 
authenticity  of  any  modern  historical  work. 

Hengstenberg,  in  his  "Dissertations  on  the  Genuine- 
ness of  the  Pentateuch,"  says:  "  It  is  the  unavoidable 
fate  of  a  spurious  historical  work  of  any  length  io  be 
involved  in  contradictions.  This  must  be  the  case  to  a 
very  great  extent  with  the  Pentateuch,  if  it  be  not  gen- 
uine. If  the  Pentateuch  is  spurious,  its  histories  and 
laws  have  been  fabricated  in  successive  portions,  and 
were  committed  to  writing  in  the  course  of  many  cen- 
turies by  different  individuals.  From  such  a  mode  of 
origination  a  mass  of  contradiction  is  inseparable,  and 
the  improving  hand  of  a  later  editor  could  never  be 
capable  of  entirely  obliterating  them." 

To  the  above  conclusions  I  may  add  that  we  are 
expressly  told  by  Ezra  (Esdras  ii.  14)  that  he  him- 
self, aided  by  five  other  persons,  wrote  these  books  in 
the  space  of  forty  days.  He  says  that  at  the  time 


222  TUB  PENTATEUCH. 

of  the  Babylonian  captivity  the  ancient  sacred  writings 
of  the  Jews  were  burnt,  and  gives  a  particular  detail  of 
the  circumstances  under  which  these  were  composed. 
He  sets  forth  that  he  undertook  to  write  all  that  had 
been  done  in  the  world  since  the  beginning.  It  may 
be  said  that  the  books  of  Esdras  are  apocryphal,  but 
in  return  it  may  be  demanded,  Has  that  conclusion  been 
reached  on  evidence  that  will  withstand  modern  criti- 
cism? In  the  early  ages  of  Christianity,  when  the 
story  of  the  fall  of  man  was  not  considered  as  essential 
to  the  Christian  system,  and  the  doctrine  of  the  atone- 
ment had  not  attained  that  precision  which  Anselm 
eventually  gave  it,  it  was  very  generally  admitted  by 
the  Fathers  of  the  Church  that  Ezra  probably  did  so 
compose  the  Pentateuch.  Thus  St.  Jerome  says,  "  Sive 
Mosem  dicere  volueris  auctorem  Pentateuchi,  sive  Es- 
dram  ejusdem  instauratorem  operis,  non  recuso."  Cle- 
mens Alexandrinus  says  that  when  these  books  had 
been  destroyed  in  the  captivity  of  Nebuchadnezzar, 
Esdras,  having  become  inspired  prophetically,  repro- 
duced them.  Irenams  says  the  same. 

The  incidents  contained  in  Genesis,  from  the  first 
to  the  tenth  chapters  inclusive  (chapters  which,  in  their 
bearing  upon  science, are  of  more  importance  than  other 
portions  of  the  Pentateuch),  have  been  obviously  com- 
piled from  short,  fragmentary  legends  of  various  author- 
ship. To  the  critical  eye  they  all,  however,  present 
peculiarities  which  demonstrate  that  they  were  written 
an  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  and  not  in  the  Desert  of 
Arabia.  They  contain  many  Chaldaisms.  An  Egyptian 
would  not  speak  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea  as  being  west 
of  him,  an  Assyrian  would.  Their  scenery  and  ma- 
chinery, if  such  expressions  may  with  propriety  be  used, 
are  altogether  Assyrian,  not  Egyptian.  They  were  such 


ASSYRIAN  TILE  RECORDS.  223 

records  as  one  might  expect  to  meet  with  in  the  cunei- 
form impressions  of  the  tile  libraries  of  the  Mesopo- 
tamian  kings.  It  is  affirmed  that  one  such  legend,  that 
of  the  Deluge,  has  already  been  exhumed,  and  it  is 
not  beyond  the  bounds  of  probability  that  the  remainder 
may  in  like  manner  be  obtained. 

From  such  Assyrian  sources,  the  legends  of  the  crea- 
tion of  the  earth  and  heaven,  the  garden  of  Eden,  the 
making  of  man  from  clay,  and  of  woman  from  one  of 
his  ribs,  the  temptation  by  the  serpent,  the  naming  of 
animals,  the  cherubim  and  flaming  sword,  the  Deluge 
and  the  ark,  the  drying  up  of  the  waters  by  the  wind, 
the  building  of  the  Tower  of  Babel,  and  the  confusion 
of  tongues,  were  obtained  by  Ezra.  He  commences  ab- 
ruptly the  proper  history  of  the  Jews  in  the  eleventh 
chapter.  At  that  point  his  universal  history  ceases;  he 
occupies  himself  with  the  story  of  one  family,  the  de- 
scendants of  Shem. 

It  is  of  this  restriction  that  the  Duke  of  Argyll,  in 
his  book  on  "  Primeval  Man/'  very  graphically  says: 
"  In  the  genealogy  of  the  family  of  Shem  we  have  a  list 
of  names  which  are  names,  and  nothing  more  to  us.  It 
is  a  genealogy  which  neither  does,  nor  pretends  to  do, 
more  than  to  trace  the  order  of  succession  among  a  few 
families  only,  out  of  the  millions  then  already  existing 
in  the  world.  Nothing  but  this  order  of  succession  is 
given,  nor  is  it  at  all  certain  that  this  order  is  consecu- 
tive or  complete.  Nothing  is  told  us  of  all  that  lay  be- 
hind that  curtain  of  thick  darkness,  in  front  of  which 
these  names  are  made  to  pass;  and  yet  there  are,  as  it 
were,  momentary  liftings,  through  which  we  have 
glimpses  of  great  movements  which  were  going  on,  and 
had  been  long  going  on  beyond.  No  shapes  are  distinct- 
ly seen.  Even  the  direction  of  those  movements  can 


_-i  i»i\  I:K>I:  AtTiiousini'  OF  THE  PENTATEUCH. 


only  be  guessed.  But  voices  are  heard  which  are  as  the 
voices  of  many  waters."  I  agree  in  the  opinion  of  Hup- 
feld,  that  "  the  discovery  that  the  Pentateuch  is  put  to- 
gether out  of  various  sources,  or  original  documents,  is 
beyond  all  doubt  not  only  one  of  the  most  important  and 
most  pregnant  with  consequences  for  the  interpretation 
of  the  historical  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  or  rather 
for  the  whole  of  theology  and  history,  but  it  is  also  one 
of  the  most  certain  discoveries  which  have  been  made  in 
the  domain  of  criticism  and  the  history  of  literature. 
Whatever  the  anticritical  party  may  bring  forward  to 
the  contrary,  it  will  maintain  itself,  and  not  retrograde 
again  through  any  thing,  so  long  as  there  exists  such  a 
thing  as  criticism;  and  it  will  not  be  easy  for  a  reader 
upon  the  stage  of  culture  on  which  we  stand  in  the 
present  day,  if  he  goes  to  the  examination  unpreju- 
diced, and  with  an  uncorrupted  power  of  appreciating 
the  truth,  to  be  able  to  ward  off  its  influence." 

What  then?  shall  we  give  up  these  books?  Does  not 
the  admission  that  the  narrative  of  the  fall  in  Eden  is 
legendary  carry  with  it  the  surrender  of  that  most  sol- 
emn and  sacred  of  Christian  doctrines,  the  atonement? 

Let  us  reflect  on  this!  Christianity,  in  its  earliest 
days,  when  it  was  converting  and  conquering  the  world, 
knew  little  or  nothing  about  that  doctrine.  We  have 
seen  that,  in  his  "  Apology,"  Tertullian  did  not  think 
it  worth  his  while  to  mention  it.  It  originated  among 
the  Gnostic  heretics.  It  was  not  admitted  by  the  Alex- 
andrian theological  school.  It  was  never  prominently 
advanced  by  the  Fathers.  It  was  not  brought  into  its 
present  commanding  position  until  the  time  of  Anselm. 
Philo  Judseus  speaks  of  the  story  of  the  fall  as  symboli- 
cal; Origen  regarded  it  as  an  allegory.  Perhaps  some 
of  the  Protestant  churches  may,  with  reason,  be  accused 


INFALLIBILITY.  225 

of  inconsistency,  since  in  part  they  consider  it  as  myth- 
ical, in  part  real.  But  if,  with  them,  we  admit  that  the 
serpent  is  symbolical  of  Satan,  does  not  that  cast  an  air 
of  allegory  over  the  whole  narrative? 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  Christian  Church  has 
burdened  itself  with  the  defense  of  these  books,  and 
voluntarily  made  itself  answerable  for  their  manifest 
contradictions  and  errors.  Their  vindication,  if  it  were 
possible,  should  have  been  resigned  to  the  Jews,  among 
whom  they  originated,  and  by  whom  they  have  been 
transmitted  to  us.  Still  more,  it  is  to  be  deeply  regret- 
ted that  the  Pentateuch,  a  production  so  imperfect  as 
to  be  unable  to  stand  the  touch  of  modern  criticism, 
should  be  put  forth  as  the  arbiter  of  science.  Let  it  be 
remembered  that  the  exposure  of  the  true  character  of 
these  books  has  been  made,  not  by  captious  enemies, 
but  by  pious  and  learned  churchmen,  some  of  them  of 
the  highest  dignity. 

While  thus  the  Protestant  churches  have  insisted  on 
the  acknowledgment  of  the  Scriptures  as  the  criterion 
of  truth,  the  Catholic  has,  in  our  own  times,  declared 
the  infallibility  of  the  pope.  It  may  be  said  that  this 
infallibility  applies  only  to  moral  or  religious  things; 
but  where  shall  the  line  of  separation  be  drawn?  Om- 
niscience cannot  be  limited  to  a  restricted  group  of 
questions;  in  its  very  nature  it  implies  the  knowledge 
of  all,  and  infallibility  means  omniscience. 

Doubtless,  if  the  fundamental  principles  of  Italian 
Christianity  be  admitted,  their  logical  issue  is  an  infal- 
lible pope.  There  is  no  need  to  dwell  on  the  unphilo- 
sophical  nature  of  this  conception;  it  is  destroyed  by 
an  examination  of  the  political  history  of  the  papacy, 
and  the  biography  of  the  popes.  The  former  exhibits 
all  the  errors  and  mistakes  to  which  institutions  of  a 


226  INFALLIBILITY. 

confessedly  human  character  have  been  found  liable;  the 
latter  is  only  too  frequently  a  story  of  sin  and  shame. 

It  was  not  possible  that  the  authoritative  promulga- 
tion of  the  dogma  of  papal  infallibility  should  meet 
among  enlightened  Catholics  universal  acceptance.  Se- 
rious and  wide-spread  dissent  has  been  produced.  A 
doctrine  so  revolting  to  common-sense  could  not  find 
any  other  result.  There  are  many  who  affirm  that,  if 
infallibility  exists  anywhere,  it  is  in  cecuraenical  coun- 
cils, and  yet  such  councils  have  not  always  agreed  with 
each  other.  There  are  also  many  who  remember  that 
councils  have  deposed  popes,  and  have  passed  judgment 
on  their  clamors  and  contentions.  Not  without  reason 
do  Protestants  demand,  What  proof  can  be  given  that 
infallibility  exists  in  the  Church  at  all?  what  proof  is 
there  that  the  Church  has  ever  been  fairly  or  justly 
represented  in  any  council?  and  why  should  the  truth 
be  ascertained  by  the  vote  of  a  majority  rather  than  by 
that  of  a  minority?  How  often  it  has  happened  that 
one  man,  standing  at  the  right  point  of  view,  has  de- 
scribed the  truth,  and,  after  having  been  denounced  and 
persecuted  by  all  others,  they  have  eventually  been  con- 
strained to  adopt  his  declarations!  Of  many  great  dis- 
coveries, has  not  this  been  the  history? 

It  is  not  for  Science  to  compose  these  contending 
claims;  it  is  not  for  her  to  determine  whether  the  crite- 
rion of  truth  for  the  religious  man  shall  be  found  in 
the  Bible,  or  in  the  oecumenical  council,  or  in  the  pope. 
She  only  asks  the  right,  which  she  so  willingly  accords 
to  others,  of  adopting  a  criterion  of  her  own.  If  she 
regards  unhistorical  legends  with  disdain;  if  she  consid- 
ers the  vote  of  a  majority  in  the  ascertainment  of  truth 
with  supreme  indifference;  if  she  leaves  the  claim  of 
infallibility  in  any  human  being  to  be  vindicated  by  the 


THE  VOLUME  OF  NATURE.        227 

stern  logic  of  coming  events — the  cold  impassiveness 
which  in  these  matters  she  maintains  is  what  she  dis- 
plays toward  her  own  doctrines.  Without  hesitation 
she  would  give  up  the  theories  of  gravitation  or  undu- 
lations, if  she  found  that  they  were  irreconcilable  with 
facts.  For  her  the  volume  of  inspiration  is  the  book 
of  Nature,  of  which  the  open  scroll  is  ever  spread  forth 
before  the  eyes  of  every  man.  Confronting  all,  it  needs 
no  societies  for  its  dissemination.  Infinite  in  extent, 
eternal  in  duration,  human  ambition  and  human  fanati- 
cism have  never  been  able  to  tamper  with  it.  On  the 
earth  it  is  illustrated  by  all  that  is  magnificent  and 
beautiful,  on  the  heavens  its  letters  are  suns  and  worlds. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

CONTROVERSY   RESPECTING   THE   GOVERNMENT    OP   THE 
UNIVERSE. 

There  are  two  conceptions  of  the  government  of  the  world :  1.  By 
Providence;  2.  By  Law. — The  former  maintained  by  the 
priesthood. — Sketch  of  the  introduction  of  the  latter. 

Kepler  discovers  the  laws  that  preside  over  the  solar  system. — His 
works  are  denounced  by  papal  authority. —  The  foundations 
of  mechanical  philosophy  are  laid  by  Da  Vinci. — Galileo  dis- 
covers the  fundamental  laws  of  Dynamics. — Newton  applies 
them  to  the  movements  of  the  celestial  bodies,  and  shows  that 
the,  solar  system  is  governed  by  mathematical  necessity. — 
Herschel  extends  that  conclusion  to  the  universe. — The  nebular 
hypothesis.—  Theological  exceptions  to  it. 

Evidences  of  the  control  of  law  in  the  construction  of  the  earth, 
and  in  the  development  of  the  animal  and  plant  series. —  They 
arose  by  Evolution,  not  by  Creation. 

The  reign  of  law  is  exhibited  by  the  historic  career  of  human 
societies,  and  in  the  case  of  individual  man. 

Partial  adoption  of  this  view  by  some  of  the  Reformed  Churches. 

Two  interpretations  may  be  given  of  the  mode  of 
government  of  the  world.  It  may  be  by  incessant  di- 
vine interventions,  or  by  the  operation  of  unvarying  law. 

To  the  adoption  of  the  former  a  priesthood  will  al- 
ways, incline,  .since  it  must  desire  to  be  considered  as 
standing  between  the  prayer  of  the  votary  and  the  provi- 
dential act.  Its  importance  is  magnified  by  the  power 
it  claims  of  determining  what  that  act  shall  be.  In  the 
pre-Christian  (Roman)  religion,  the  grand  office  of  the 

228 


GOVERNMENT  BY  LAW.  229 

priesthood  was  the  discovery  of  future  events  by  oracles, 
omens,  or  an  inspection  of  the  entrails  of  animals,  and 
by  the  offering  of  sacrifices  to  propitiate  the  gods.  In 
the  later,  the  Christian  times,  a  higher  power  was 
claimed;  the  clergy  asserting  that,  by  their  interces- 
sions, they  could  regulate  the  course  of  affairs,  avert 
dangers,  secure  benefits,  work  miracles,  and  even  change 
the  order  of  Nature. 

Not  without  reason,  therefore,  did  they  look  upon 
the  doctrine  of  government  by  unvarying  law  with  dis- 
favor. It  seemed  to  depreciate  their  dignity,  to  lessen 
their  importance.  To  them  there  was  something  shock- 
ing in  a  God  who  cannot  be  swayed  by  human  entreaty, 
a  cold,  passionless  divinity — something  frightful  in  fa- 
talism, destiny. 

But  the  orderly  movement  of  the  heavens  could  not 
fail  in  all  ages  to  make  a  deep  impression  on  thought- 
ful observers — the  rising  and  setting  of  the  sun;  the 
increasing  or  diminishing  light  of  the  day;  the  waxing 
and  waning  of  the  moon;  the  return  of  the  seasons  in 
their  proper  courses;  the  measured  march  of  the  wander- 
ing planets  in  the  sky — what  are  all  these,  and  a  thou- 
sand such,  but  manifestations  of  an  orderly  and  un- 
changing procession  of  events?  The  faith  of  early  ob- 
servers in  this  interpretation  may  perhaps  have  been 
shaken  by  the  occurrence  of  such  a  phenomenon  as  an 
eclipse,  a  sudden  and  mysterious  breach  of  the  ordinary 
course  of  natural  events;  but  it  would  be  resumed  in 
tenfold  strength  as  soon  as  the  discovery  was  made  that 
eclipses  themselves  recur,  and  may  be  predicted. 

Astronomical  predictions  of  all  kinds  depend  upon 

the  admission  of  this  fact — that  there  never  has  been 

and  never  will  be  any  intervention  in  the  operation  of 

natural  laws.     The  scientific  philosopher  affirms  that 

17 


230  KKI'LKU. 

the  condition  of  the  world  at  any  given  moment  is  the 
direct  result  of  its  condition  in  the  preceding  moment, 
and  the  direct  cause  of  its  condition  in  the  subsequent 
moment.  Law  and  chance  are  only  different  names  for 
mechanical  necessity. 

About  fifty  years  after  the  death  of  Copernicus, 
John  Kepler,  a  native  of  Wiirtemberg,  who  had  adopted 
the  heliocentric  theory,  and  who  was  deeply  impressed 
with  the  belief  that  relationshipsexist  in  the  revolutions 
of  the  planetary  bodies  round  the  sun,  and  that  these  if 
correctly  examined  would  reveal  the  laws  under  which 
those  movements  take  place,  devoted  himself  to  the 
study  of  the  distances,  times,  and  velocities  of  the  plan- 
ets, and  the  form  of  their  orbits.  His  method  was,  to 
submit  the  observations  to  which  he  had  access,  such 
as  those  of  Tycho  Brahe,  to  computations  based  first  on 
one  and  then  on  another  hypothesis,  rejecting  the  hy- 
pothesis if  he  found  that  the  calculations  did  not  accord 
with  the  observations.  The  incredible  labor  he  had 
undergone  (he  says,  "  I  considered,  and  I  computed, 
until  I  almost  went  mad  ")  was  at  length  rewarded,  and 
in  1G09  he  published  his  book,  "  On  the'  Motions  of  the 
Planet  Mars."  In  this  he  had  attempted  to  reconcile 
the  movements  of  that  planet  to  the  hypothesis  of  eccen- 
trics and  epicycles,  but  eventually  discovered  that  the 
orbit  of  a  planet  is  not  a  circle  but  an  ellipse,  the  sun 
being  in  one  of  the  foci,  and  that  the  areas  swept  over 
by  a  line  drawn  from  the  planet  to  the  sun  are  propor- 
tional to  the  times.  These  constitute  what  are  now 
known  as  the  first  and  second  laws  of  Kepler.  Eight 
years  subsequently  he  was  rewarded  by  the  discovery 
of  a  third  law,  defining  the  relation  between  the  mean 
distances  of  the  planets  from  the  sun  and  the  times  of 
their  revolutions;  "the  squares  of  the  periodic  times  are 


KEPLER.  231 

proportional  to  the  cubes  of  the  distances."  In  "An 
Epitome  of  the  Copernican  System,"  published  in  1618, 
he  announced  this  law,  and  showed  that  it  holds  good 
for  the  satellites  of  Jupiter  as  regards  their  primary. 
Hence  it  was  inferred  that  the  laws  which  preside  over 
the  grand  movements  of  the  solar  system  preside  also 
over  the  less  movements  of  its  constituent  parts. 

The  conception  of  law  which  is  unmistakably  con- 
veyed by  Kepler's  discoveries,  and  the  evidence  they 
gave  in  support  of  the  heliocentric  as  against  the  geo- 
centric theory,  could  not  fail  to  incur  the  reprehension 
of  the  Eoman  authorities.  The  congregation  of  the 
Index,  therefore,  when  they  denounced  the  Copernican 
system  as  utterly  contrary  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  pro- 
hibited Kepler's  "  Epitome  "  of  that  system.  It  was  on 
this  occasion  that  Kepler  submitted  his  celebrated  re- 
monstrance: "  Eighty  years  have  elapsed  during  which 
the  doctrines  of  Copernicus  regarding  the  movement  of 
the  earth  and  the  immobility  of  the  sun  have  been  pro- 
mulgated without  hindrance,  because  it  was  deemed 
allowable  to  dispute  concerning  natural  things,  and  to 
elucidate  the  works  of  God,  and  now  that  new  testimony 
is  discovered  in  proof  of  the  truth  of  those  doctrines — 
testimony  which  was  not  known  to  the  spiritual  judges 
— ye  would  prohibit  the  promulgation  of  the  true  sys- 
tem of  the  structure  of  the  universe." 

None  of  Kepler's  contemporaries  believed  the  law 
of  the  areas,  nor  was  it  accepted  until  the  publication 
of  the  "  Principia  "  of  Newton.  In  fact,  no  one  in  those 
times  understood  the  philosophical  meaning  of  Kepler's 
laws.  He  himself  did  not  foresee  what  they  must  in- 
evitably lead  to.  His  mistakes  showed  how  far  he  was 
from  perceiving  their  result.  Thus  he  thought  that 
each  planet  is  the  seat  of  an  intelligent  principle,  and 


232  KEPLEK. 

that  there  is  a  relation  between  the  magnitudes  of  the 
orbits  of  the  five  principal  planets  and  the  five  regular 
solids  of  geometry.  At  first  he  inclined  to  believe  that 
the  orbit  of  Mars  is  oval,  nor  was  it  until  after  a  wea- 
risome study  that  he  detected  the  grand  truth,  its  ellip- 
tical form.  An  idea  of  the  incorruptibility  of  the  celes- 
tial objects  had  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  Aristotelian 
doctrine  of  the  perfection  of  circular  motions,  and  to 
the  belief  that  there  were  none  but  circular  motions  in 
the  heavens.  He  bitterly  complains  of  this  as  having 
been  a  fatal  "  thief  of  his  time."  His  philosophical 
daring  is  illustrated  in  his  breaking  through  this  time- 
honored  tradition. 

In  some  most  important  particulars  Kepler  antici- 
pated Newton.  He  was  the  first  to  give  clear  ideas  re- 
specting gravity.  He  says  every  particle  of  matter  will 
rest  until  it  is  disturbed  by  some  other  particle — that 
the  earth  attracts  a  stone  more  than  the  stone  attracts 
the  earth,  and  that  bodies  move  to  each  other  in  propor- 
tion to  their  masses;  that  the  earth  would  ascend  to  the 
moon  one-fifty-fourth  of  the  distance,  and  the  moon 
would  move  toward  the  earth  the  other  fifty-three.  He 
affirms  that  the  moon's  attraction  causes  the  tides,  and 
that  the  planets  must  impress  irregularities  on  the 
moon's  motions. 

The  progress  of  astronomy  is  obviously  divisible 
into  three  periods: 

1.  The  period  of  observation  of  the  apparent  mo- 
tions of  the  heavenly  bodies. 

2.  The  period  of  discovery  of  their  real  motions, and 
particularly  of  the  laws  of  the  planetary  revolutions; 
this  was  signally  illustrated  by  Copernicus  and  Kepler. 

3.  The  period  of  the  ascertainment  of  the  causes  of 
those  laws.    It  was  the  epoch  of  Newton. 


DA  VINCI.  233 

The  passage  of  the  second  into  the  third  period  de- 
pended on  the  development  of  the  Dynamical  branch 
of  mechanics,  which  had  been  in  a  stagnant  condition 
from  the  time  of  Archimedes  or  the  Alexandrian 
School. 

In  Christian  Europe  there  had  not  been  a  cultiva- 
tor of  mechanical  philosophy  until  Leonardo  da  Vinci, 
who  was  born  A.  D.  1452.  To  him,  and  not  to  Lord 
Bacon,  must  be  attributed  the  renaissance  of  science. 
Bacon  was  not  only  ignorant  of  mathematics,  but  de- 
preciated its  application  to  physical  inquiries.  He 
contemptuously  rejected  the  Copernican  system,  alleg- 
ing absurd  objections  to  it.  While  Galileo  was  on  the 
brink  of  his  great  telescopic  discoveries,  Bacon  was  pub- 
lishing doubts  as  to  the  utility  of  instruments  in  scien- 
tific investigations.  To  ascribe  the  inductive  method 
to  him  is  to  ignore  history.  His  fanciful  philosophical 
suggestions  have  never  been  of  the  slightest  practical 
use.  No  one  has  ever  thought  of  employing  them. 
Except  among  English  readers,  his  name  is  almost  un- 
known. 

To  Da  Vinci  I  shall  have  occasion  to  allude  more 
particularly  on  a  subsequent  page.  Of  his  works  still 
remaining  in  manuscript,  two  volumes  are  at  Milan, 
and  one  in  Paris,  carried  there  by  Napoleon:  After  an 
interval  of  about  seventy  years,  Da  Vinci  was  followed 
by  the  Dutch  engineer,  Stevinus,  whose  work  on  the 
principles  of  equilibrium  was  published  in  1586.  Six 
years  afterward  appeared  Galileo's  treatise  on  mechanics. 

To  this  great  Italian  is  due  the  establishment  of  the 
three  fundamental  laws  of  dynamics,  known  as  the  Laws 
of  Motion. 

The  consequences  of  the  establishment  of  these  laws 
were  very  important. 


234  GALILEO. 

It  had  been  supposed  that  continuous  movements, 
such,  for  instance,  as  those  of  the  celestial  bodies,  could 
only  be  maintained  by  a  perpetual  consumption  and 
perpetual  application  of  force,  but  the  first  of  Galileo's 
laws  declared  that  every  body  will  persevere  in  its  state 
of  rest,  or  of  uniform  motion  in  a  right  line,  until  it  is 
compelled  to  change  that  state  by  disturbing  forces.  A 
clear  perception  of  this  fundamental  principle  is  essen- 
tial to  a  comprehension  of  the  elementary  facts  of 
physical  astronomy.  Since  all  the  motions  that  we  wit- 
ness taking  place  on  the  surface  of  the  earth  soon  come 
to  an  end,  we  are  led  to  infer  that  rest  is  the  natural 
condition  of  things.  We  have  made,  then,  a  very  great 
advance  when  we  have  become  satisfied  that  a  body  is 
equally  indifferent  to  rest  as  to  motion,  and  that  it 
equally  perseveres  in  either  state  until  disturbing  forces 
are  applied.  Such  disturbing  forces  in  the  case  of  com- 
mon movement  are  friction  and  the  resistance  of  the 
air.  When  no  such  resistances  exist,  movement  must  be 
perpetual,  as  is  the  case  with  the  heavenly  bodies,  which 
are  moving  in  a  void. 

Forces,  no  matter  what  their  difference  of  magni- 
tude may  be,  will  exert  their  full  influence  conjointly, 
each  as  though  the  other  did  not  exist.  Thus,  when  a 
ball  is  suffered  to  drop  from  the  mouth  of  a  cannon,  it 
falls  to  the  ground  in  a  certain  interval  of  time  through 
the  influence  of  gravity  upon  it.  If,  then,  it  be  fired 
from  the  cannon,  though  now  it  may  be  projected  some 
thousands  of  feet  in  a  second,  the  effect  of  gravity  upon 
it  will  be  precisely  the  same  as  before.  In  the  inter- 
mingling of  forces  there  is  no  deterioration;  each  pro- 
duces its  own  specific  effect. 

In  the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth  century,  through 
the  works  of  Borelli,  Hooke,  and  Huyghcns,  it  had  be- 


NEWTON.  235 

come  plain  that  circular  motions  could  be  accounted  for 
by  the  laws  of  Galileo.  Borelli,  treating  of  the  mo- 
tions of  Jupiter's  satellites,  shows  how  a  circular  move- 
ment may  arise  under  the  influence  of  a  central  force. 
Hooke  exhibited  the  inflection  of  a  direct  motion  into  a 
circular  by  a  supervening  central  attraction. 

The  year  1687  presents,  not  only  an  epoch  in  Euro- 
pean science,  but  also  in  the  intellectual  development  of 
man.  It  is  marked  by  the  publication  of  the  "  Prin- 
cipia"  of  Newton,  an  incomparable,  an  immortal 
work. 

On  the  principle  that  all  bodies  attract  each  other 
with  forces  directly  as  their  masses,  and  inversely  as  the 
squares  of  their  distances,  Newton  showed  that  all  the 
movements  of  the  celestial  bodies  may  be  accounted  for, 
and  that  Kepler's  laws  might  all  have  been  predicted — 
the  elliptic  motions — the  described  areas — the  relation 
of  the  times  and  distances.  As  we  have  seen,  Newton's 
contemporaries  had  perceived  how  circular  motions 
could  be  explained;  that  was  a  special  case,  but  Newton 
furnished  the  solution  of  the  general  problem,  contain- 
ing all  special  cases  of  motion  in  circles,  ellipses,  pa- 
rabolas, hyperbolas — that  is,  in  all  the  conic  sections. 

The  Alexandrian  mathematicians  had  shown  that 
the  direction  of  movement  of  falling  bodies  is  toward 
the  centre  of  the  earth.  Newton  proved  that  this  must 
necessarily  be  the  case,  the  general  effect  of  the  attrac- 
tion of  all  the  particles  of  a  sphere  being  the  same  as 
if  they  were  all  concentrated  in  its  centre. 

To  this  central  force,  thus  determining  the  fall  of 
bodies,  the  designation  of  gravity  was  given.  Up  to 
this  time,  no  one,  except  Kepler,  had  considered  how 
far  its  influence  reached.  It  seemed  to  Newton  possible 
that  it  might  extend  as  far  as  the  moon,  and  be  the 


236  UNIVERSAL  GRAVITATION. 

force  that  deflects  her  from  a  rectilinear  path,  and 
makes  her  revolve  in  her  orbit  round  the  earth.  It 
was  easy  to  compute,  on  the  principle  of  the  law  of 
inverse  squares,  whether  the  earth's  attraction  was  suffi- 
cient to  produce  the  observed  effect.  Employing  the 
measures  of  the  size  of  the  earth  accessible  at  the  time, 
Newton  found  that  the  moon's  deflection  was  only  thir- 
teen feet  in  a  minute;  whereas,  if  his  hypothesis  of  grav- 
itation were  true,  it  should  be  fifteen  feet.  But  in 
1609  Picard,  as  we  have  seen,  executed  the  measure- 
ment of  a  degree  more  carefully  than  had  previously 
been  done;  this  changed  the  estimate  of  the  magnitude 
of  the  earth, and,  therefore, of  the  distance  of  the  moon; 
and,  Newton's  attention  having  been  directed  to  it  by 
some  discussions  that  took  place  at  the  Royal  Society  in 
1679,  he  obtained  Picard's  results,  went  home,  took  out 
his  old  papers,  and  resumed  his  calculations.  As  they 
drew  to  a  close,  he  became  so  much  agitated  that  he 
was  obliged  to  desire  a  friend  to  finish  them.  The  ex- 
pected coincidence  was  established.  It  was  proved  that 
the  moon  is  retained  in  her  orbit  and  made  to  revolve 
round  the  earth  by  the  force  of  terrestrial  gravity.  The 
genii  of  Kepler  had  given  place  to  the  vortices  of  Des- 
cartes, and  these  in  their  turn  to  the  central  force  of 
Newton. 

In  like  manner  the  earth,  and  each  of  the  planets, 
are  made  to  move  in  an  elliptic  orbit  round  the  sun  by 
his  attractive  force,  and  perturbations  arise  by  reason 
of  the  disturbing  action  of  the  planetary  masses  on  one 
another.  Knowing  the  masses  and  the  distances,  these 
disturbances  may  be  computed.  Later  astronomers  have 
even  succeeded  with  the  inverse  problem,  that  is,  know- 
ing the  perturbations  or  disturbances,  to  find  the  place 
and  the  mass  of  the  disturbing  body.  Thus,  from  the 


NEWTON.  237 

deviations  of  Uranus  from  his  theoretical  position,  the 
discovery  of  Neptune  was  accomplished. 

Newton's  merit  consisted  in  this,  that  he  applied 
the  laws  of  dynamics  to  the  movements  of  the  celestial 
bodies,  and  insisted  that  scientific  theories  must  be  sub- 
stantiated by  the  agreement  of  observations  with  calcu- 
lations. 

"When  Kepler  announced  his  three  laws,  they  were 
received  with  condemnation  by  the  spiritual  authorities, 
not  because  of  any  error  they  were  supposed  to  present 
or  to  contain,  but  partly  because  they  gave  support  to 
the  Copernican  system, and  partly  because  it  was  judged 
inexpedient  to  admit  the  prevalence  of  law  of  any  kind 
as  opposed  to  providential  intervention.  The  world 
was  regarded  as  the  theatre  in  which  the  divine  will  was 
daily  displayed;  it  was  considered  derogatory  to  the  ma- 
jesty of  God  that  that  will  should  be  fettered  in  any 
way.  The  power  of  the  clergy  was  chiefly  manifested  in 
the  influence  they  were  alleged  to  possess  in  changing 
his  arbitrary  determinations.  It  was  thus  that  they 
could  abate  the  baleful  action  of  comets,  secure  fine 
weather  or  rain,  prevent  eclipses,  and,  arresting  the 
course  of  Nature,  work  all  manner  of  miracles;  it  was 
thus  that  the  shadow  had  been  made  to  go  back  on  the 
dial,  and  the  sun  and  the  moon  stopped  in  mid-career. 

In  the  century  preceding  the  epoch  of  Newton,  a 
great  religious  and  political  revolution  had  taken  place 
— the  Reformation.  Though  its  effect  had  not  been  the 
securing  of  complete  liberty  for  thought,  it  had  weak- 
ened many  of  the  old  ecclesiastical  bonds.  In  the  re- 
formed countries  there  was  no  power  to  express  a  con- 
demnation of  Newton's  works,  and  among  the  clergy 
there  was  no  disposition  to  give  themselves  any  concern 
about  the  matter.  At  first  the  attention  of  the  Prot- 


238  '''in-: 


was  engrossed  by  the  movements  of  his  great 
enemy  the  Catholic,  and  when  that  source  of  disquie- 
tude ceased,  and  the  inevitable  partitions  of  the  Kefor- 
mation  arose,  that  attention  was  fastened  upon  the  rival 
and  antagonistic  Churches.  The  Lutheran,  the  Calvin- 
ist,  the  Episcopalian,  the  Presbyterian,  had  something 
more  urgent  on  hand  than  Newton's  mathematical 
demonstrations. 

So,  uncondemned,  and  indeed  unobserved,  in  this 
clamor  of  fighting  sects,  Newton's  grand  theory  solidly 
established  itself.  Its  philosophical  significance  was 
infinitely  more  momentous  than  the  dogmas  that  these 
persons  were  quarreling  about.  It  not  only  accepted 
tb.5  heliocentric  theory  and  the  laws  discovered  by  Kep- 
ler, but  it  proved  that,  no  matter  what  might  be  the 
weight  of  opposing  ecclesiastical  authority,  the  sun  must 
be  the  centre  of  our  system,  and  that  Kepler's  laws  are 
the  result  of  a  mathematical  necessity.  It  is  impossible 
that  they  should  be  other  than  they  are. 

But  what  is  the  meaning  of  all  this?  Plainly  that 
the  solar  system  is  not  interrupted  by  providential  inter- 
ventions, but  is  under  the  government  of  irreversible 
law  —  law  that  is  itself  the  issue  of  mathematical  neces- 
sity. 

The  telescopic  observations  of  Herschel  I.  satisfied 
him  that  there  are  very  many  double  stars  —  double 
not  merely  because  they  are  accidentally  in  the  same 
line  of  view,  but  because  they  are  connected  physically, 
revolving  round  each  other.  These  observations  were 
continued  and  greatly  extended  by  Herschel  II.  The 
elements  of  the  elliptic  orbit  of  the  double  star  £  of  the 
Great  Bear  were  determined  by  Savary,  its  period  being 
fifty-eight  and  one-quarter  years;  those  of  another,  <r 
Corona?,  were  determined  by  Hind,  its  period  being 


NEBULAR  HYPOTHESIS.  239 

more  than  seven  hundred  and  thirty-six  years.  The  or- 
bital movement  of  these  double  suns  in  ellipses  compels 
us  to  admit  that  the  law  of  gravitation  holds  good  far 
beyond  the  boundaries  of  the  solar  system;  indeed,  as 
far  as  the  telescope  can  reach,  it  demonstrates  the  reign 
of  law.  D'Alembert,  in  the  Introduction  to  the  Ency- 
clopedia, says:  "  The  universe  is  but  a  single  fact;  it  is 
only  one  great  truth." 

Shall  we,  then,  conclude  that  the  solar  and  the  starry 
systems  have  been  called  into  existence  by  God,  and 
that  he  has  then  imposed  upon  them  by  his  arbitrary 
will  laws  under  the  control  of  which  it  was  his  pleasure 
that  their  movements  should  be  made? 

Or  are  there  reasons  for  believing  that  these  several 
systems  came  into  existence  not  by  such  an  arbitrary 
fiat,  but  through  the  operation  of  law? 

The  following  are  some  peculiarities  displayed  by 
the  solar  system  as  enumerated  by  Laplace:  All  the 
planets  and  their  satellites  move  in  ellipses  of  such 
small  eccentricity  that  they  are  nearly  circles.  All  the 
planets  move  in  the  same  direction  and  nearly  in  the 
same  plane.  The  movements  of  the  satellites  are  in 
the  same  direction  as  those  of  the  planets.  The  move- 
ments of  rotation  of  the  sun,  of  the  planets,  and  the 
satellites,  are  in  the  same  direction  as  their  orbital  mo- 
tions, and  in  planes  little  different. 

It  is  impossible  that  so  many  coincidences  could  be 
the  result  of  chance!  Is  it  not  plain  that  there  must 
have  been  a  common  tie  among  all  these  bodies,  that 
they  are  only  parts  of  what  must  once  have  been  a  sin- 
gle mass? 

But  if  we  admit  that  the  substance  of  which  the 
solar  system  consists  once  existed  in  a  nebulous  con- 
dition, and  was  in  rotation,  all  the  above  peculiarities 


240  NEBULAR  HYPOTHESIS. 

follow  as  necessary  mechanical  consequences.  Nay, 
more,  the  formation  of  planets,  the  formation  of  satel- 
lites and  of  asteroids,  is  accounted  for.  We  see  why 
the  outer  planets  and  satellites  are  larger  than  the  in- 
terior ones;  why  the  larger  planets  rotate  rapidly,  and 
the  small  ones  slowly;  why  of  the  satellites  the  outer 
planets  have  more,  the  inner  fewer.  We  are  furnished 
with  indications  of  the  time  of  revolution  of  the  planets 
in  their  orbits,  and  of  the  satellites  in  theirs;  we  per- 
ceive the  mode  of  formation  of  Saturn's  rings.  We 
find  an  explanation  of  the  physical  condition  of  the  sun, 
and  the  transitions  of  condition  through  which  the  earth 
and  moon  have  passed,  as  indicated  by  their  geology. 

But  two  exceptions  to  the  above  peculiarities  have 
been  noted;  they  are  in  the  cases  of  Uranus  and  Nep- 
tune. 

The  existence  of  such  a  nebulous  mass  once  admit- 
ted, all  the  rest  follows  as  a  matter  of  necessity.  Is 
there  not,  however,  a  most  serious  objection  in  the  way? 
Is  not  this  to  exclude  Almighty  God  from  the  worlds 
he  has  made? 

First,  we  must  be  satisfied  whether  there  is  any 
solid  evidence  for  admitting  the  existence  of  such  a 
nebulous  mass. 

The  nebular  hypothesis  rests  primarily  on  the  tele- 
scopic discovery  made  by  Herschel  I.,  that  there  are 
scattered  here  and  there  in  the  heavens  pale,  gleaming 
patches  of  light,  a  few  of  which  are  large  enough  to  be 
visible  to  the  naked  eye.  Of  these,  many  may  be  re- 
solved by  a  sufficient  telescopic  power  into  a  congeries 
of  stars,  but  some,  such  as  the  great  nebula  in  Orion, 
have  resisted  the  best  instruments  hitherto  made. 

It  was  asserted  by  those  who  were  indisposed  to  ac- 
cept the  nebular  hypothesis,  that  the  non-resolution  was 


NEBULAE  HYPOTHESIS.  241 

due  to  imperfection  in  the  telescopes  used.  In  these 
instruments  two  distinct  functions  may  be  observed: 
their  light-gathering  power  depends  on  the  diameter  of 
their  object  mirror  or  lens,  their  defining  power  de- 
pends on  the  exquisite  correctness  of  their  optical  sur- 
faces. Grand  instruments  may  possess  the  former  qual- 
ity in  perfection  by  reason  of  their  size,  but  the  latter 
very  imperfectly,  either  through  want  of  original  con- 
figuration, or  distortion  arising  from  flexure  through 
their  own  weight.  But,  unless  an  instrument  be  perfect 
in  this  respect,  as  well  as  adequate  in  the  other,  it  may 
fail  to  decompose  a  nebula  into  discrete  points. 

Fortunately,  however,  other  means  for  the  settle- 
ment of  this  question  are  available.  In  1846,  it  was 
discovered  by  the  author  of  this  book  that  the  spectrum 
of  an  ignited  solid  is  continuous — that  is,  has  neither 
dark  nor  bright  lines.  Fraunhofer  had  previously  made 
known  that  the  spectrum  of  ignited  gases  is  discontin- 
uous. Here,  then,  is  the  means  of  determining  whether 
the  light  emitted  by  a  given  nebula  comes  from  an  in- 
candescent gas,  or  from  a  congeries  of  ignited  solids, 
stars,  or  suns.  If  its  spectrum  be  discontinuous,  it  is  a 
true  nebula  or  gas;  if  continuous,  a  congeries  of  stars. 

In  1864,  Mr.  Huggins  made  this  examination  in  the 
case  of  a  nebula  in  the  constellation  Draco.  It  proved 
to  be  gaseous. 

Subsequent  observations  have  shown  that,  of  sixty 
nebulae  examined,  nineteen  give  discontinuous  or  gas- 
eous spectra,  the  remainder  continuous  ones. 

It  may,  therefore,  be  admitted  that  physical  evi- 
dence has  at  length  been  obtained,  demonstrating  the 
existence  of  vast  masses  of  matter  in  a  gaseous  condi- 
tion, and  at  a  temperature  of  incandescence.  The 
hypothesis  of  Laplace  has  thus  a  firm  basis.  In  such  a 


242  NEBULAR  HYPOTHESIS. 

nebular  mass,  cooling  by  radiation  is  a  necessary  inci- 
dent, and  condensation  and  rotation  the  inevitable  re- 
sults. There  must  be  a  separation  of  rings  all  lying 
in  one  plane,  a  generation  of  planets  and  satellites  all 
rotating  alike,  a  central  sun  and  engirdling  globes. 
From  a  chaotic  mass,  through  the  operation  of  natu- 
ral laws,  an  organized  system  has  been  produced.  An 
integration  of  matter  into  worlds  has  taken  place 
through  a  decline  of  heat. 

If  such  be  the  cosmogony  of  the  solar  system,  such 
the  genesis  of  the  planetary  worlds,  we  are  constrained 
to  extend  our  views  of  the  dominion  of  law,  and  to 
recognize  its  agency  in  the  creation  as  well  as  in  the 
conservation  of  the  innumerable  orbs  that  throng  the 
universe. 

But,  again,  it  may  be  asked:  "Is  there  not  some- 
thing profoundly  impious  in  this?  Are  we  not  exclud- 
ing Almighty  God  from  the  world  he  has  made?  " 

We  have  often  witnessed  the  formation  of  a  cloud 
in  a  serene  sky.  A  hazy  point,  barely  perceptible — a. 
little  wreath  of  mist — increases  in  volume,  and  becomes 
darker  and  denser,  until  it  obscures  a  large  portion  of 
the  heavens.  It  throws  itself  into  fantastic  shapes,  it 
gathers  a  glory  from  the  sun,  is  borne  onward  by  the 
wind,  and,  perhaps,  as  it  gradually  came,  so  it  gradually 
disappears,  melting  away  in  the  untroubled  air. 

Now,  we  say  that  the  little  vesicles  of  which  this 
cloud  was  composed  arose  from  the  condensation  of 
water- vapor  preexisting  in  the  atmosphere,  through  re- 
duction of  temperature;  we  show  how  they  assumed 
the  form  they  present.  We  assign  optical  reasons  for 
the  brightness  or  blackness  of  the  cloud;  we  explain, 
on  mechanical  principles,  its  drifting  before  the  wind; 
for  its  disappearance  we  account  on  the  principles  of 


NEBULAR  HYPOTHESIS.  243 

chemistry.  It  never  occurs  to  us  to  invoke  the  inter- 
position of  the  Almighty  in  the  production  and  fash- 
ioning of  this  fugitive  form.  We  explain  all  the  facts 
connected  with  it  by  physical  laws,  and  perhaps  should 
reverentially  hesitate  to  call  into  operation  the  ringer 
of  God. 

But  the  universe  is  nothing  more  than  such  a  cloud 
— a  cloud  of  suns  and  worlds.  Supremely  grand  though 
it  may  seem  to  us,  to.  the  Infinite  and  Eternal  Intellect 
it  is  no  more  than  a  fleeting  mist.  If  there  be  a  multi- 
plicity of  worlds  in  infinite  space,  there  is  also  a  suc- 
cession of  worlds  in  infinite  time.  As  one  after  an- 
other cloud  replaces  cloud  in  the  skies,  so  this  starry 
system,  the  universe,  is  the  successor  of  countless  others 
that  have  preceded  it — the  predecessor  of  countless  oth- 
ers that  will  follow.  There  is  an  unceasing  metamor- 
phosis, a  sequence  of  events,  without  beginning  or  end. 

If,  on  physical  principles,  we  account  for  minor  me- 
teorological incidents,  mists  and  clouds,  is  it  not  permis- 
sible for  us  to  appeal  to  the  same  principle  in  the  origin 
of  world-systems  and  universes,  which  are  only  clouds 
on  a  space-scale  somewhat  larger,  mists  on  a  time-scale 
somewhat  less  transient?  Can  any  man  place  the  line 
which  bounds  the  physical  on  one  side,  the  supernatural 
on  the  other?  Do  not  our  estimates  of  the  extent  and 
the  duration  of  things  depend  altogether  on  our  point 
of  view?  Were  we  set  in  the  midst  of  the  great  nebula 
of  Orion,  how  transcendently  magnificent  the  scene! 
The  vast  transformations,  the  condensations  of  a  fiery 
mist  into  worlds,  might  seem  worthy  of  the  immediate 
presence,  the  supervision  of  God;  here,  at  our  distant 
station,  where  millions  of  miles  are  inappreciable  to  our 
eyes,  and  suns  seem  no  bigger  than  motes  in  the  air, 
that  nebula  is  more  insignificant  than  the  faintest  cloud. 


244  DKCLIXK   <»F    UKAT    IN    TIIH    KAKTII. 

Galileo,  in  his  description  of  the  constellation  of  Orion, 
did  not  think  it  worth  while  so  much  as  to  mention  it. 
The  most  rigorous  theologian  of  those  days  would  have 
seen  nothing  to  blame  in  imputing  its  origin  to  second- 
ary causes,  nothing  irreligious  in  failing  to  invoke  the 
arbitrary  interference  of  God  in  its  metamorphoses.  If 
such  be  the  conclusion  to  which  we  come  respecting  it, 
what  would  be  the  conclusion  to  which  an  Intelligence 
seated  in  it  might  come  respecting  us?  It  occupies  an 
extent  of  space  millions  of  times  greater  than  that  of 
our  solar  system;  we  are  invisible  from  it,  and  therefore 
absolutely  insignificant.  Would  such  an  Intelligence 
think  it  necessary  to  require  for  our  origin  and  main- 
tenance the  immediate  intervention  of  God? 

From  the  solar  system  let  us  descend  to  what  is  still 
more  insignificant — a  little  portion  of  it;  let  us  descend 
to  our  own  earth.  In  the  lapse  of  time  it  has  expe- 
rienced great  changes.  Have  these  been  due  to  inces- 
sant divine  interventions,  or  to  the  continuous  operation 
of  unfailing  law?  The  aspect  of  Nature  perpetually 
varies  under  our  eyes,  still  more  grandly  and  strikingly 
has  it  altered  in  geological  times.  But  the  laws  guiding 
those  changes  never  exhibit  the  slightest  variation.  In 
the  midst  of  immense  vicissitudes  they  are  immutable. 
The  present  order  of  things  is  only  a  link  in  a  vast  con- 
nected chain  reaching  back  to  an  incalculable  past,  and 
forward  to  an  infinite  future. 

There  is  evidence,  geological  and  astronomical,  that 
the  temperature  of  the  earth  and  her  satellite  was  in 
the  remote  past  very  much  higher  than  it  is  now.  A 
decline  so  slow  as  to  be  imperceptible  at  short  intervals, 
but  manifest  enough  in  the  course  of  many  ages,  has  oc- 
curred. The  heat  has  been  lost  by  radiation  into  space. 


COOLING  TAKES  PLACE  UNDER  LAW.        245 

The  cooling  of  a  mass  of  any  kind,  no  matter  whether 
large  or  small,  is  not  discontinuous;  it  does  not  go  on 
by  fits  and  starts;  it  takes  place  under  the  operation  of 
a  mathematical  law,  though  for  such  mighty  changes  as 
are  here  contemplated  neither  the  formula  of  Newton, 
nor  that  of  Dulong  and  Petit,  may  apply.  It  signifies 
nothing  that  periods  of  partial  decline,  glacial  periods, 
or  others  of  temporary  elevation,  have  been  intercalated; 
it  signifies  nothing  whether  these  variations  may  have 
arisen  from  topographical  variations,  as  those  of  level, 
or  from  periodicities  in  the  radiation  of  the  sun.  A 
periodical  sun  would  act  as  a  mere  perturbation  in  the 
gradual  decline  of  heat.  The  perturbations  of  the 
planetary  motions  are  a  confirmation,  not  a  disproof,  of 
gravity. 

Now,  such  a  decline  of  temperature  must  have  been 
attended  by  innumerable  changes  of  a  physical  charac- 
ter in  our  globe.  Her  dimensions  must  have  dimin- 
ished through  contraction,  the  length  of  her  day  must 
have  lessened,  her  surface  must  have  collapsed,  and 
fractures  taken  place  along  the  lines  of  least  resistance; 
the  density  of  the  sea  must  have  increased,  its  volume 
must  have  become  less;  the  constitution  of  the  atmos- 
phere must  have  varied,  especially  in  the  amount  of 
water-vapor  and  carbonic  acid  that  it  contained;  the 
barometric  pressure  must  have  declined. 

These  changes,  and  very  many  more  that  might  be 
mentioned,  must  have  taken  place  not  in  a  discontinu- 
ous but  in  an  orderly  manner,  since  the  master-fact, 
the  decline  of  heat,  that  was  causing  them,  was  itself 
following  a  mathematical  law. 

But  not  alone  did  lifeless  Nature  submit  to  these 
inevitable  mutations;  living  Nature  was  also  simultane- 
ously affected. 
18 


246    CONSEQUENT   VARIATIONS  OP  ORGANISMS. 

An  organic  form  of  any  kind,  vegetable  or  animal, 
will  remain  unchanged  only  so  long  as  the  environment 
in  which  it  is  placed  remains  unchanged.  Should  an 
alteration  in  the  environment  occur,  the  organism  will 
either  be  modified  or  destroyed. 

Destruction  is  more  likely  to  happen  as  the  change 
in  the  environment  is  more  sudden;  modification  or 
transformation  is  more  possible  as  that  change  is  more 
gradual. 

Since  it  is  demonstrably  certain  that  lifeless  Nature 
has  in  the  lapse  of  ages  undergone  vast  modifications; 
since  the  crust  of  the  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the  atmos- 
phere, are  no  longer  such  as  they  once  were;  since  the 
distribution  of  the  land  and  the  ocean  and  all  manner 
of  physical  conditions  have  varied;  since  there  have 
been  such  grand  changes  in  the  environment  of  living 
things  on  the  surface  of  our  planet — it  necessarily  fol- 
lows that  organic  Nature  must  have  passed  through  de- 
structions and  transformations  in  correspondence  thereto. 

That  such  extinctions,  such  modifications,  have  taken 
place,  how  copious,  how  convincing,  is  the  evidence! 

Here,  again,  we  must  observe  that,  since  the  disturb- 
ing agency  was  itself  following  a  mathematical  law, 
these  its  results  must  be  considered  as  following  that 
law  too. 

Such  considerations,  then,  plainly  force  upon  us 
the  conclusion  that  the  organic  progress  of  the  world 
has  been  guided  by  the  operation  of  immutable  law — 
not  determined  by  discontinuous,  disconnected,  arbi- 
trary interventions  of  God.  They  incline  us  to  view 
favorably  the  idea  of  transmutations  of  one  form  into 
another,  rather  than  that  of  sudden  creations. 

Creation  implies  an  abrupt  appearance,  transforma- 
tion a  gradual  change. 


THE  DOCTRINE  OP  EVOLUTION.  247 

In  this  manner  is  presented  to  our  contemplation 
the  great  theory  of  Evolution.  Every  organic  being 
has  a  place  in  a  chain  of  events.  It  is  not  an  isolated, 
a  capricious  fact,  but  an  unavoidable  phenomenon.  It 
has  its  place  in  that  vast,  orderly  concourse  which  has 
successively  risen  in  the  past,  has  introduced  the  pres- 
ent, and  is  preparing  the  way  for  a  predestined  future. 
From  point  to  point  in  this  vast  progression  there  has 
been  a  gradual,  a  definite,  a  continuous  unfolding,  a 
resistless  order  of  evolution.  But  in  the  midst  of  these 
mighty  changes  stand  forth  immutable  the  laws  that  are 
dominating  over  all. 

If  we  examine  the  introduction  of  any  type  of  life 
in  the  animal  series,  we  find  that  it  is  in  accordance 
with  transformation,  not  with  creation.  Its  beginning 
is  under  an  imperfect  form  in  the  midst  of  other  forms, 
of  which  the  time  is  nearly  complete,  and  which  are 
passing  into  extinction.  By  degrees,  one  species  after 
another  in  succession  more  and  more  perfect  arises,  un- 
til, after  many  ages,  a  culmination  is  reached.  From 
that  there  is,  in  like  manner,  a  long,  a  gradual  decline. 

Thus,  though  the  mammal  type  of  life  is  the  charac- 
teristic of  the  Tertiary  and  post-Tertiary  periods,  it  does 
not  suddenly  make  its  appearance  without  premonition 
in  those  periods.  Far  back,  in  the  Secondary,  we  find 
it  under  imperfect  forms,  struggling,  as  it  were,  to 
make  good  a  foothold.  At  length  it  gains  a  predomi- 
nance under  higher  and  better  models. 

So,  too,  of  reptiles,  the  characteristic  type  of  life  of 
the  Secondary  period.  As  we  see  in  a  dissolving  view, 
out  of  the  fading  outlines  of  a  scene  that  is  passing 
away,  the  dim  form  of  a  new  one  emerging,  which  grad- 
ually gains  strength,  reaches  its  culmination,  and  then 
melts  away  in  some  other  that  is  displacing  it,  so  rep- 


248  DEVELOPMENT  BY  LAW. 

tile-life  doubtfully  appears,  reaches  its  culmination,  and 
gradually  declines.  In  all  this  there  is  nothing  abrupt; 
the  changes  shade  into  each  other  by  insensible  degrees. 

How  could  it  be  otherwise?  The  hot-blooded  ani- 
mals could  not  exist  in  an  atmosphere  so  laden  with 
carbonic  acid  as  was  that  of  the  primitive  times.  But 
the  removal  of  that  noxious  ingredient  from  the  air 
by  the  leaves  of  plants  under  the  influence  of  sunlight, 
the  enveloping  of  its  carbon  in  the  earth  under  the 
form  of  coal,  the  disengagement  of  its  oxygen,  permitted 
their  life.  As  the  atmosphere  was  thus  modified,  the 
sea  was  involved  in  the  change;  it  surrendered  a  large 
part  of  its  carbonic  acid,  and  the  limestone  hitherto 
held  in  solution  by  it  was  deposited  in  the  solid  form. 
For  every  equivalent  of  carbon  buried  in  the  earth, 
there  was  an  equivalent  of  carbonate  of  lime  separated 
from  the  sea — not  necessarily  in  an  amorphous  condi- 
tion, most  frequently  under  an  organic  form.  The  sun- 
shine kept  up  its  work  day  by  day,  but  there  were  de- 
manded myriads  of  days  for  the  work  to  be  completed. 
It  was  a  slow  passage  from  a  noxious  to  a  purified  at- 
mosphere, and  an  equally  slow  passage  from  a  cold- 
blooded to  a  hot-blooded  type  of  life.  But  the  physical 
changes  were  taking  place  under  the  control  of  law, 
and  the  organic  transformations  were  not  sudden  or 
arbitrary  providential  acts.  They  were  the  immediate, 
the  inevitable  consequences  of  the  physical  changes, 
and  therefore,  like  them,  the  necessary  issue  of  law. 

For  a  more  detailed  consideration  of  this  subject,  I 
may  refer  the  reader  to  Chapters  I.,  II.,  VII.,  of  the 
second  book  of  my  "  Treatise  on  Human  Physiology," 
published  in  1856. 

Is  the  world,  then,  governed  by  law  or  by  providen- 


DEVELOPMENT  IN  MAN.  249 

tial  interventions,  abruptly  breaking  the  proper  se- 
quence of  events? 

To  complete  our  view  of  this  question,  we  turn 
finally  to  what,  in  one  sense,  is  the  most  insignificant, 
in  another  the  most  important,  case  that  can  be  consid- 
ered. Do  human  societies,  in  their  historic  career, 
exhibit  the  marks  of  a  predetermined  progress  in  an 
unavoidable  track?  Is  there  any  evidence  that  the  life 
of  nations  is  under  the  control  of  immutable  law? 

May  we  conclude  that,  in  society,  as  in  the  individual 
man,  parts  never  spring  from  nothing,  but  are  evolved 
or  developed  from  parts  that  are  already  in  existence? 

If  any  one  should  object  to  or  deride  the  doctrine 
of  the  evolution  or  successive  development  of  the  ani- 
mated forms  which  constitute  that  unbroken  organic 
chain  reaching  from  the  beginning  of  life  on  the  globe 
to  the  present  times,  let  him  reflect  that  he  has  himself 
passed  through  modifications  the  counterpart  of  those 
he  disputes.  For  nine  months  his  type  of  life  was 
aquatic,  and  during  that  time  he  assumed,  in  succession, 
many  distinct  but  correlated  forms.  At  birth  his  type 
of  life  became  aerial;  he  began  respiring  the  atmospher- 
ic air;  new  elements  of  food  were  supplied  to  him;  the 
mode  of  his  nutrition  changed;  but  as  yet  he  could  see 
nothing,  hear  nothing,  notice  nothing.  By  degrees 
conscious  existence  was  assumed;  he  became  aware  that 
there  is  an  external  world.  In  due  time  organs  adapted 
to  another  change  of  food,  the  teeth,  appeared,  and  a 
change  of  food  ensued.  He  then  passed  through  the 
stages  of  childhood  and  youth,  his  bodily  form  develop- 
ing, and  with  it  his  intellectual  powers.  At  about  fif- 
teen years,  in  consequence  of  the  evolution  which  spe- 
cial parts  of  his  system  had  attained,  his  moral  charac- 
ter changed.  New  ideas,  new  passions,  influenced  him. 


250  DEVELOPMENT  IN  MAN. 

And  that  that  was  the  cause,  and  this  the  effect,  is 
demonstrated  when,  by  the  skill  of  the  surgeon,  those 
parts  have  been  interfered  with.  Nor  does  the  develop- 
ment, the  metamorphosis,  end  here;  it  requires  many 
years  for  the  body  to  reach  its  full  perfection,  many 
years  for  the  mind.  A  culmination  is  at  length  reached, 
and  then  there  is  a  decline.  I  need  not  picture  its 
mournful  incidents — the  corporeal,  the  intellectual  en- 
feeblement.  Perhaps  there  is  little  exaggeration  in  say- 
ing that  in  less  than  a  century  every  human  being  on 
the  face  of  the  globe,  if  not  cut  off  in  an  untimely 
manner,  has  passed  through  all  these  changes. 

Is  there  for  each  of  us  a  providential  intervention  as 
we  thus  pass  from  stage  to  stage  of  life?  or  shall  we 
not  rather  believe  that  the  countless  myriads  of  human 
beings  who  have  peopled  the  earth  have  been  under  the 
guidance  of  an  unchanging,  a  universal  law? 

But  individuals  are  the  elementary  constituents  of 
communities — nations.  They  maintain  therein  a  rela- 
tion like  that  which  the  particles  of  the  body  maintain 
to  the  body  itself.  These,  introduced  into  it,  commence 
and  complete  their  function;  they  die,  and  are  dismissed. 

Like  the  individual,  the  nation  comes  into  existence 
without  its  own  knowledge,  and  dies  without  its  own 
consent,  often  against  its  own  will.  National  life  differs 
in  no  particular  from  individual,  except  in  this,  that  it 
is  spread  over  a  longer  span,  but  no  nation  can  escape 
its  inevitable  term.  Each,  if  its  history  be  well  consid- 
ered, shows  its  time  of  infancy,  its  time  of  youth,  its 
time  of  maturity,  its  time  of  decline,  if  its  phases  of 
life  be  completed. 

In  the  phases  of  existence  of  all,  so  far  as  those 
phases  are  completed,  there  arc  common  characteristics, 
and,  as  like  accordances  in  individuals  point  out  that  all 


INTERVENTION  AND  LAW.  251 

are  living  under  a  reign  of  law,  we  are  justified  in  in- 
ferring that  the  course  of  nations,  and  indeed  the  prog- 
ress of  humanity,  does  not  take  place  in  a  chance  or 
random  way,  that  supernatural  interventions  never 
break  the  chain  of  historic  acts,  that  every  historic  event 
has  its  warrant  in  some  preceding  event,  and  gives  war- 
rant to  others  that  are  to  follow. 

But  this  conclusion  is  the  essential  principle  of  Stoi- 
cism— that  Grecian  philosophical  system  which,  as  I 
have  already  said,  offered  a  support  in  their  hour  of 
trial  and  an  unwavering  guide  in  the  vicissitudes  of 
life,  not  only  to  many  illustrious  Greeks,  but  also  to 
some  of  the  great  philosophers,  statesmen,  generals,  and 
emperors  of  Eome;  a  system  which  excluded  chance 
from  every  thing,  and  asserted  the  direction  of  all 
events  by  irresistible  necessity,  to  the  promotion  of  per- 
fect good;  a  system  of  earnestness,  sternness,  austerity, 
virtue — a  protest  in  favor  of  the  common-sense  of  man- 
kind. And  perhaps  we  shall  not  dissent  from  the  re- 
mark of  Montesquieu,  who  affirms  that  the  destruction 
of  the  Stoics  was  a  great  calamity  to  the  human  race; 
for  they  alone  made  great  citizens,  great  men. 

To  the  principle  of  government  by  law,  Latin  Chris- 
tianity, in  its  papal  form,  is  in  absolute  contradiction. 
The  history  of  this  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  is 
almost  a  diary  of  miracles  and  supernatural  interven- 
tions. These  show  that  the  supplications  of  holy  men 
have  often  arrested  the  course  of  Nature — if,  indeed, 
there  be  any  such  course;  that  images  and  pictures  have 
worked  wonders;  that  bones,  hairs,  and  other  sacred  rel- 
ics, have  wrought  miracles.  The  criterion  or  proof  of 
the  authenticity  of  many  of  these  objects  is,  not  an  un- 
challengeable record  of  their  origin  and  history,  but  an 
exhibition  of  their  miracle-working  powers. 


252  INTERVENTION  AND  LAW. 

Is  not  that  a  strange  logic  which  finds  proof  of  an 
asserted  fact  in  an  inexplicable  illustration  of  some- 
thing else? 

Even  in  the  darkest  ages  intelligent  Christian  men 
must  have  had  misgivings  as  to  these  alleged  providen- 
tial or  miraculous  interventions.  There  is  a  solemn 
grandeur  in  the  orderly  progress  of  Nature  which  pro- 
foundly impresses  us;  and  such  is  the  character  of  con- 
tinuity in  the  events  of  our  individual  life  that  we  in- 
stinctively doubt  the  occurrence  of  the  supernatural  in 
that  of  our  neighbor.  The  intelligent  man  knows  well 
that,  for  his  personal  behoof,  the  course  of  Nature  has 
never  been  checked;  for  him  no  miracle  has  ever  been 
worked;  he  attributes  justly  every  event  of  his  life  to 
some  antecedent  event;  this  he  looks  upon  as  the  cause, 
that  as  the  consequence.  When  it  is  affirmed  that,  in  his 
neighbor's  behalf,  such  grand  interventions  have  been 
vouchsafed,  he  cannot  do  otherwise  than  believe  that  his 
neighbor  is  either  deceived,  or  practising  deception. 

As  might,  then,  have  been  anticipated,  the  Catho- 
lic doctrine  of  miraculous  intervention  received  a  rude 
shock  at  the  time  of  the  Reformation,  when  predestina- 
tion and  election  were  upheld  by  some  of  the  greatest 
theologians,  and  accepted  by  some  of  the  greatest  Prot- 
estant Churches.  With  stoical  austerity  Calvin  declares: 
"  We  were  elected  from  eternity,  before  the  foundation 
of  the  world,  from  no  merit  of  our  own,  but  according 
to  the  purpose  of  the  divine  pleasure."  In  affirming 
this,  Calvin  was  resting  on  the  belief  that  God  has  from 
all  eternity  decreed  whatever  comes  to  pass.  Thus, 
after  the  lapse  of  many  ages,  were  again  emerging  into 
prominence  the  ideas  of  the  Basilidians  and  Valen- 
tinians,  Christian  sects  of  the  second  century,  whose 
Gnostical  views  led  to  the  engraftment  of  the  great 


PREDESTINATION.  253 

doctrine  of  the  Trinity  upon  Christianity.  They  assert- 
ed that  all  the  actions  of  men  are  necessary,  that  even 
faith  is  a  natural  gift,  to  which  men  are  forcibly  deter- 
mined, and  must  therefore  be  saved,  though  their  lives 
be  ever  so  irregular.  From  the  Supreme  God  all  things 
proceeded.  Thus,  also,  came  into  prominence  the  views 
which  were  developed  by  Augustine  in  his  work,  "  De 
dono  perseverantiae."  These  were,  that  God,  by  his 
arbitrary  will,  has  selected  certain  persons  without  re- 
spect to  foreseen  faith  or  good  works,  and  has  infallibly 
ordained  to  bestow  upon  them  eternal  happiness;  other 
persons,  in  like  manner,  he  has  condemned  to  eternal 
reprobation.  The  Sublapsarians  believed  that  "  God 
permitted  the  fall  of  Adam; "  the  Supralapsarians  that 
"  he  predestinated  it,  with  all  its  pernicious  conse- 
quences, from  all  eternity,  and  that  our  first  parents 
had  no  liberty  from  the  beginning."  In  this,  these 
sectarians  disregarded  the  remark  of  St.  Augustine: 
"  Nefas  est  dicere  Deum  aliquid  nisi  bonum  predesti- 
nare." 

Is  it  true,  then,  that  "  predestination  to  eternal  hap- 
piness is  the  everlasting  purpose  of  God,  whereby,  be- 
fore the  foundations  of  the  world  were  laid,  he  hath 
constantly  decreed  by  his  council,  secret  to  us,  to  de- 
liver from  curse  and  damnation  those  whom  he  hath 
chosen  out  of  mankind?  "  Is  it  true  that  of  the  hu- 
man family  there  are  some  who,  in  view  of  no  fault  of 
their  own,  Almighty  God  has  condemned  to  unending 
torture,  eternal  misery? 

In  1595  the  Lambeth  Articles  asserted  that  "  God 
from  eternity  hath  predestinated  certain  men  unto  life; 
certain  he  hath  reprobated."  In  1618  the  Synod  of 
Dort  decided  in  favor  of  this  view.  It  condemned  the 
remonstrants  against  it,  and  treated  them  with  such  se- 


254  PREDESTINATION. 

verity  that  many  of  them  had  to  flee  to  foreign  coun- 
tries. Even  in  the  Church  of  England,  as  is  manifested 
by  its  seventeenth  Article  of  Faith,  these  doctrines  have 
found  favor. 

Probably  there  was  no  point  which  brought  down 
from  the  Catholics  on  the  Protestants  severer  condem- 
nation than  this,  their  partial  acceptance  of  the  govern- 
ment of  the  world  by  law.  In  all  Reformed  Europe 
miracles  ceased.  But,  with  the  cessation  of  shrine-cure, 
relic-cure,  great  pecuniary  profits  ended.  Indeed,  as  is 
well  known,  it  was  the  sale  of  indulgences  that  pro- 
voked the  Reformation — indulgences  which  are  essen- 
tially a  permit  from  God  for  the  practice  of  sin,  condi- 
tioned on  the  payment  of  a  certain  sum  of  money  to  the 
priest. 

Philosophically,  the  Reformation  implied  a  protest 
against  the  Catholic  doctrine  of  incessant  divine  inter- 
vention in  human  affairs,  invoked  by  sacerdotal  agency; 
but  this  protest  was  far  from  being  fully  made  by  all 
the  Reforming  Churches.  The  evidence  in  behalf  of 
government  by  law,  which  has  of  late  years  been  olfered 
by  science,  is  received  by  many  of  them  with  suspicion, 
perhaps  with  dislike;  sentiments  which,  however,  must 
eventually  give  way  before  the  hourly-increasing  weight 
of  evidence. 

Shall  we  not,  then,  conclude  with  Cicero,  who, 
quoted  by  Lactantius,  says:  "  One  eternal  and  immu- 
table law  embraces  all  things  and  all  times  "  ? 


CHAPTER   X. 

LATIN   CHRISTIANITY   IN   EELATION  TO   MODERN 
CIVILIZATION. 

For  more  than  a  thousand  years  Latin  Christianity  controlled  the 
intelligence  of  Europe,  and  is  responsible  for  the  result. 

That  result  is  manifested  by  the  condition  of  the  city  of  Rome  at 
the  Reformation,  and  by  the  condition  of  the  Continent  of 
Europe  in  domestic  and  social  life. — European  nations  suf- 
fered under  the  coexistence  of  a  dual  government,  a  spiritual 
and  a  temporal. — They  were  immersed  in  ignorance,  supersti- 
tion, discomfort. — Explanation  of  the  failure  of  Catholicism. 
— Political  history  of  the  papacy :  it  was  transmuted  from  a 
spiritual  confederacy  into  an  absolute  monarchy. — Action  of 
the  College  of  Cardinals  and  the  Curia. — Demoralization  that 
ensued  from  the  necessity  of  raising  large  revenues. 

The  advantages  accruing  to  Europe  during  the  Catholic  rule  arose 
not  from  direct  intention,  but  were  incidental. 

The  general  result  is,  that  the  political  influence  of  Catholicism 
was  prejudicial  to  modern  civilization. 

LATIN  Christianity  is  responsible  for  the  condition 
and  progress  of  Europe  from  the  fourth  to  the  six- 
teenth century.  We  have  now  to  examine  how  it  dis- 
charged its  trust. 

It  will  be  convenient  to  limit  to  the  case  of  Europe 
what  has  here  to  be  presented,  though,  from  the  claim 
of  the  papacy  to  superhuman  origin,  and  its  demand  for 
universal  obedience,  it  should  strictly  be  held  to  ac- 
count for  the  condition  of  all  mankind.  Its  inefficacy 
against  the  great  and  venerable  religions  of  Southern 

235 


256  ROME  AT  THE  REFORMATION. 

and  Eastern  Asia  would  furnish  an  important  and  in- 
structive theme  for  consideration,  and  lead  us  to  the 
conclusion  that  it  has  impressed  itself  only  where 
Roman  imperial  influences  have  prevailed;  a  political 
conclusion  which,  however,  it  contemptuously  rejects. 

Doubtless  at  the  inception  of  the  Reformation  there 
were  many  persons  who  compared  the  existing  social 
condition  with  what  it  had  been  in  ancient  times.  Mor- 
als had  not  changed,  intelligence  had  not  advanced,  so- 
ciety had  little  improved.  From  the  Eternal  City  itself 
its  splendors  had  vanished.  The  marble  streets,  of 
which  Augustus  had  once  boasted,  had  disappeared. 
Temples,  broken  columns,  and  the  long,  arcaded  vistas 
of  gigantic  aqueducts  bestriding  the  desolate  Campagna, 
presented  a  mournful  scene.  From  the  uses  to  which 
they  had  been  respectively  put,  the  Capitol  had  been 
known  as  Goats'  Hill,  and  the  site  of  the  Roman  Fo- 
rum, whence  laws  had  been  issued  to  the  world,  as 
Cows'  Field.  The  palace  of  the  Casars  was  hidden  by 
mounds  of  earth,  crested  with  flowering  shrubs.  The 
baths  of  Caracalla,  with  their  porticoes,  gardens,  reser- 
voirs, had  long  ago  become  useless  through  the  destruc- 
tion of  their  supplying  aqueducts.  On  the  ruins  of  that 
grand  .edifice,  "  flowery  glades  and  thickets  of  odorifer- 
ous trees  extended  in  ever-winding  labyrinths  upon  im- 
mense platforms,  and  dizzy  arches  suspended  in  the 
air."  Of  the  Coliseum,  the  most  colossal  of  Roman 
ruins,  only  about  one-third  remained.  Once  capable  of 
accommodating  nearly  ninety  thousand  spectators,  it 
had,  in  succession, been  turned  into  a  fortress  in  the  mid- 
dle ages,  and  then  into  a  stone-quarry  to  furnish  material 
for  the  palaces  of  degenerate  Roman  princes.  Some  of 
the  popes  had  occupied  it  as  a  woollen-mill,  some  as  a 
saltpetre-factory;  some  had  planned  the  conversion  of 


ROME  AT  THE  REFORMATION.  257 

its  magnificent  arcades  into  shops  for  tradesmen.  The 
iron  clamps  which  bound  its  stones  together  had  been 
stolen.  The  walls  were  fissured  and  falling.  Even  in 
our  own  times  botanical  works  have  been  composed  on 
the  plants  which  have  made  this  noble  wreck  their 
home.  "  The  Flora  of  the  Coliseum "  contains  four 
hundred  and  twenty  species.  Among  the  ruins  of 
classical  buildings  might  be  seen  broken  columns,  cy- 
presses, and  mouldy  frescoes,  dropping  from  the  walls. 
Even  the  vegetable  world  participated  in  the  melancholy 
change:  the  myrtle,  which  once  flourished  on  the  Aven- 
tine,  had  nearly  become  extinct;  the  laurel,  which  once 
gave  its  leaves  to  encircle  the  brows  of  emperors,  had 
been  replaced  by  ivy — the  companion  of  death. 

But  perhaps  it  may  be  said  the  popes  were  not  re- 
sponsible for  all  this.  Let  it  be  remembered  that  in 
less  than  one  hundred  and  forty  years  the  city  had  been 
successively,  taken  by  Alaric,  Genseric,  Eicimer,  Viti- 
ges,  Totila;  that  many  of  its  great  edifices  had  been 
converted  into  defensive  works.  The  aqueducts  were 
destroyed  by  Vitiges,  who  ruined  the  Campagna;  the 
palace  of  the  Casars  was  ravaged  by  Totila;  then  there 
had  been  the  Lombard  sieges;  then  Robert  Guiscard 
and  his  Normans  had  burnt  the  city  from  the  Antonine 
Column  to  the  Flaminian  Gate,  from  the  Lateran  to  the 
Capitol;  then  it  was  sacked  and  mutilated  by  the  Con- 
stable Bourbon;  again  and  again  it  was  flooded  by  in- 
undations of  the  Tiber  and  shattered  by  earthquakes. 
We  must,  however,  bear  in  mind  the  accusation  of 
Machiavelli,  who  says,  in  his  "History  of  Florence," 
that  nearly  all  the  barbarian  invasions  of  Italy  were  by 
the  invitations  of  the  pontiffs,  who  called  in  those 
hordes!  It  was  not  the  Goth,  nor  the  Vandal,  nor  the 
Norman,  nor  the  Saracen,  but  the  popes  and  their  neph- 


253  NOME  AT  THE  REFORMATION. 

ews,  who  produced  the  dilapidation  of  Rome!  Lime- 
kilns had  been  fed  from  the  ruins,  classical  buildings 
had  become  stone-quarries  for  the  palaces  of  Italian 
princes,  and  churches  were  decorated  from  the  old 
temples. 

Churches  decorated  from  the  temples!  It  is  for 
this  and  such  as  this  that  the  popes  must  be  held  respon- 
sible. Superb  Corinthian  columns  had  been  chiseled 
into  images  of  the  saints.  Magnificent  Egyptian  obe- 
lisks had  been  dishonored  by  papal  inscriptions.  The 
Septizonium  of  Severus  had  been  demolished  to  furnish 
materials  for  the  building  of  St.  Peter's;  the  bronze 
roof  of  the  Pantheon  had  been  melted  into  columns  to 
ornament  the  apostle's  tomb. 

The  great  bell  of  Viterbo,  in  the  tower  of  the,  Capi- 
tol, had  announced  the  death  of  many  a  pope,  and  still 
desecration  of  the  buildings  and  demoralization  of  the 
people  went  on.  Papal  Rome  manifested  no  consider- 
ation, but  rather  hatred,  for  classical  Rome.  The  pon- 
tiffs had  been  subordinates  of  the  Byzantine  sovereigns, 
then  lieutenants  of  the  Frankish  kings,  then  arbiters  of 
Europe;  their  government  had  changed  as  much  as 
those  of  any  of  the  surrounding  nations;  there  had 
been  complete  metamorphoses  in  its  maxims,  objects, 
claims.  In  one  point  only  it  had  never  changed — in- 
tolerance. Claiming  to  be  the  centre  of  the  religious 
life  of  Europe,  it  steadfastly  refused  to  recognize  any 
religious  existence  outside  of  itself,  yet  both  in  a  polit- 
ical and  theological  sense  it  was  rotten  to  the  core. 
Erasmus  and  Luther  heard  with  amazement  the  blas- 
phemies and  witnessed  with  a  shudder  the  atheism  of 
the  city. 

The  historian  Ranke,  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for 
many  of  these  facts,  has  depicted  in  a  very  graphic  man- 


ITS  POLITICAL  CONDITION.  259 

ner  the  demoralization  of  the  great  metropolis.  The 
popes  were,  for  the  most  part,  at  their  election,  aged 
men.  Power  was,  therefore,  incessantly  passing  into 
new  hands.  Every  election  was  a  revolution  in  pros- 
pects and  expectations.  In  a  community  where  all 
might  rise,  where  all  might  aspire  to  all,  it  necessarily 
followed  that  every  man  was  occupied  in  thrusting  some 
other  into  the  background.  Though  the  population  of 
the  city  at  the  inception  of  the  Eeformation  had  sunk 
to  eighty  thousand,  there  were  vast  crowds  of  placemen, 
and  still  greater  ones  of  aspirants  for  place.  The  suc- 
cessful occupant  of  the  pontificate  had  thousands  of 
offices  to  give  away — offices  from  many  of  which  the  in- 
cumbents had  been  remorselessly  ejected;  many  had  been 
created  for  the  purpose  of  sale.  The  integrity  and 
capacity  of  an  applicant  were  never  inquired  into;  the 
points  considered  were,  what  services  has  he  rendered 
or  can  he  render  to  the  party?  how  much  can  he  pay  for 
the  preferment?  An  American  reader  can  thoroughly 
realize  this  state  of  things.  At  every  presidential  elec- 
tion he  witnesses  similar  acts.  The  election  of  a  pope 
by  the  Conclave  is  not  unlike  the  nomination  of  an 
American  president  by  a  convention.  In  both  cases 
there  are  many  offices  to  give  away. 

William  of  Malmesbury  says  that  in  his  day  the  Eo- 
mans  made  a  sale  of  whatever  was  righteous  and  sacred 
for  gold.  After  his  time  there  was  no  improvement; 
the  Church  degenerated  into  an  instrument  for  the  ex- 
ploitation of  money.  Vast  sums  were  collected  in  Italy; 
vast  sums  were  drawn  under  all  manner  of  pretenses 
from  surrounding  and  reluctant  countries.  Of  these 
the  most  nefarious  was  the  sale  of  indulgences  for  the 
perpetration  of  sin.  Italian  religion  had  become  the 
art  of  plundering  the  people. 


260  SOCIAL  CONDITION  OP  ROME. 

For  more  than  a  thousand  years  the  sovereign  pon- 
tiffs had  been  rulers  of  the  city.  True,  it  had  witnessed 
many  scenes  of  devastation  for  which  they  were  not  re- 
sponsible; but  they  were  responsible  for  this,  that  they 
had  never  made  any  vigorous,  any  persistent  effort  for 
its  material,  its  moral  improvement.  Instead  of  being 
in  these  respects  an  exemplar  for  the  imitation  of  the 
world,  it  became  an  exemplar  of  a  condition  that  ought 
to  be  shunned.  Things  steadily  went  on  from  bad  to 
worse,  until  at  the  epoch  of  the  Reformation  no  pious 
stranger  could  visit  it  without  being  shocked. 

The  papacy,  repudiating  science  as  absolutely  incom- 
patible with  its  pretensions,  had  in  later  years  addressed 
itself  to  the  encouragement  of  art.  But  music  and 
painting,  though  they  may  be  exquisite  adornments  of 
life,  contain  no  living  force  that  can  develop  a  weak 
nation  into  a  strong  one;  nothing  that  can  permanently 
assure  the  material  well-being  or  happiness  of  communi- 
ties; and  hence  at  the  time  of  the  Reformation,  to  one 
who  thoughtfully  considered  her  condition,  Rome  had 
lost  all  living  energy.  She  was  no  longer  the  arbiter  of 
the  physical  or  the  religious  progress  of  the  world.  For 
the  progressive  maxims  of  the  republic  and  the  empire, 
she  had  substituted  the  stationary  maxims  of  the  papacy. 
She  had  the  appearance  of  piety  and  the  possession  of 
art.  In  this  she  resembled  one  of  those  friar-corpses 
which  we  still  see  in  their  brown  cowls  in  the  vaults  of 
the  Cappuccini,  with  a  breviary  or  some  withered  flow- 
ers in  its  hands. 

From  this  view  of  the  Eternal  City,  this  survey  of 
what  Latin  Christianity  had  done  for  Rome  itself,  let  us 
turn  to  the  whole  European  Continent.  Let  us  try  to 
determine  the  true  value  of  the  system  that  was  guiding 
society:  let  us  judge  it  by  its  fruits. 


POPULATION.  201 

The  condition  of  nations  as  to  their  well-being  is 
most  precisely  represented  by  the  variations  of  their 
population.  Forms  of  government  have  very  little  in- 
fluence on  population,  but  policy  may  control  it  com- 
pletely. 

It  has  been  very  satisfactorily  shown  by  authors  who 
have  given  attention  to  the  subject,  that  the  variations 
of  population  depend  upon  the  interbalancing  of  the 
generative  force  of  society  and  the  resistances  to  life. 

By  the  generative  force  of  society  is  meant  that  in- 
stinct which  manifests  itself  in  the  multiplication  of  the 
race.  To  some  extent  it  depends  on  climate;  but,  since 
the  climate  of  Europe  did  not  sensibly  change  between 
the  fourth  and  the  sixteenth  centuries,  we  may  regard 
this  force  as  having  been,  on  that  continent,  during  the 
period  under  consideration,  invariable. 

By  the  resistances  to  life  is  meant  whatever  tends 
to  make  individual  existence  more  difficult  of  support. 
Among  such  may  be  enumerated  insufficient  food,  in- 
adequate clothing,  imperfect  shelter. 

It  is  also  known  that,  if  the  resistances  become  in- 
appreciable, the  generative  force  will  double  a  popula- 
tion in  twenty-five  years. 

The  resistances  operate  in  two  modes:  1.  Physically; 
since  they  diminish  the  number  of  births,  and  shorten 
the  term  of  the  life  of  all.  2.  Intellectually;  since,  in 
a  moral,  and  particularly  in  a  religious  community,  they 
postpone  marriage,  by  causing  individuals  to  decline  its 
responsibilities  until  they  feel  that  they  are  competent 
to  meet  the  charges  and  cares  of  a  family.  Hence  the 
explanation  of  a  long-recognized  fact,  that  the  number 
of  marriages  during  a  given  period  has  a  connection 
with  the  price  of  food. 

The  increase  of  population  keeps  pace  with  the  in- 
19 


262  VARIATIONS  OP  POPULATION. 

crease  of  food;  and,  indeed,  such  being  the  power  of 
the  generative  force,  it  overpasses  the  means  of  sub- 
sistence, establishing  a  constant  pressure  upon  them. 
Under  these  circumstances,  it  necessarily  happens  that 
a  certain  amount  of  destitution  must  occur.  Individu- 
als have  come  into  existence  who  must  be  starved. 

As  illustrations  of  the  variations  that  have  occurred 
in  the  population  of  different  countries,  may  be  men- 
tioned the  immense  diminution  of  that  of  Italy  in  con- 
sequence of  the  wars  of  Justinian;  the  depopulation  of 
North  Africa  in  consequence  of  theological  quarrels; 
its  restoration  through  the  establishment  of  Moham- 
medanism; the  increase  of  that  of  all  Europe  through 
the  feudal  system,  when  estates  became  more  valuable 
in  proportion  to  the  number  of  retainers  they  could  sup- 
ply. The  crusades  caused  a  sensible  diminution,  not 
only  through  the  enormous  army  losses,  but  also  by  rea- 
son of  the  withdrawal  of  so  many  able-bodied  men  from 
marriage-life.  Similar  variations  have  occurred  on  the 
American  Continent.  The  population  of  Mexico  was 
very  quickly  diminished  by  two  million  through  the 
rapacity  and  atrocious  cruelty  of  the  Spaniards,  who 
drove  the  civilized  Indians  to  despair.  The  same  hap- 
pened in  Peru. 

The  population  of  England  at  the  Norman  conquest 
was  about  two  million.  In  five  hundred  years  it  had 
scarcely  doubled.  It  may  be  supposed  that  this  sta- 
tionary condition  was  to  some  extent  induced  by  the  pa- 
pal policy  of  the  enforcement  of  celibacy  in  the  clergy. 
The  "  legal  generative  force  "  was  doubtless  affected  by 
that  policy,  the  "  actual  generative  force  "  was  not.  For 
those  who  have  made  this  subject  their  study  have  long 
ago  been  satisfied  that  public  celibacy  is  private  wick- 
edness. This  mainly  determined  the  laity,  as  well  as 


VARIATIONS  OF  POPULATION.  263 

the  government  in  England,  to  suppress  the  monas- 
teries. It  was  openly  asserted  that  there  were  one  hun- 
dred thousand  women  in  England  made  dissolute  by 
the  clergy. 

In  my  history  of  the  "  American  Civil  War,"  I  have 
presented  some  reflections  on  this  point,  which  I  will 
take  the  liberty  of  quoting  here:  "  What,  then,-  does  this 
stationary  condition  of  the  population  mean?  It  means, 
food  obtained  with  hardship,  insufficient  clothing,  per- 
sonal uncleanness,  cabins  that  could  not  keep  out  the 
weather,  the  destructive  effects  of  cold  and  heat,  miasm, 
want  of  sanitary  provisions,  absence  of  physicians,  use- 
lessness  of  shrine-cure,  the  deceptiveness  of  miracles,  in 
which  society  was  putting  its  trust;  or,  to  sum  up  a  long 
catalogue  of  sorrows,  wants,  and  sufferings,  in  one  term 
— it  means  a  high  death-rate. 

"  But  more;  it  means  deficient  births.  And  what 
does  that  point  out?  Marriage  postponed,  licentious 
life,  private  wickedness,  demoralized  society. 

"  To  an  American,  who  lives  in  a  country  that  was 
yesterday  an  interminable  and  impenetrable  desert,  but 
which  to-day  is  filling  with  a  population  doubling  itself 
every  twenty-five  years  at  the  prescribed  rate,  this  awful 
waste  of  actual  and  contingent  life  cannot  but  be  a  most 
surprising  fact.  His  curiosity  will  lead  him  to  inquire 
what  kind  of  system  that  could  have  been  which  was 
pretending  to  guide  and  develop  society,  but  which  must 
be  held  responsible  for  this  prodigious  destruction,  ex- 
celling, in  its  insidious  result,  war,  pestilence,  and  fam- 
ine combined;  insidious,  for  men  were  actually  believing 
that  it  secured  their  highest  temporal  interests.  How 
different  now!  In  England,  the  same  geographical  sur- 
face is  sustaining  ten  times  the  population  of  that  day, 
and  sending  forth  its  emigrating  swarms.  Let  him,  who 


204  CONDITION  OP  EURO I'K. 

looks  back  with  veneration  on  the  past,  settle  in  his  own 
niiiul  what  such  a  system  could  have  been  worth." 

These  variations  in  the  population  of  Europe  have 
been  attended  with  changes  in  distribution.  The  cen- 
tre of  population  has  passed  northward  since  the  estab- 
lishment of  Christianity  in  the  Roman  Empire.  It  has 
since  passed  westward,  in  consequence  of  the  develop- 
ment of  manufacturing  industry. 

We  may  now  examine  somewhat  more  minutely  the 
character  of  the  resistances  which  thus,  for  a  thousand 
years,  kept  the  population  of  Europe  stationary.  The 
surface  of  the  Continent  was  for  the  most  part  covered 
with  pathless  forests;  here  and  there  it  was  dotted  with 
monasteries  and  towns.  In  the  lowlands  and  along 
the  river-courses  were  fens,  sometimes  hundreds  of 
miles  in  extent,  exhaling  their  pestiferous  miasms,  and 
spreading  agues  far  and  wide.  In  Paris  and  London, 
the  houses  were  of  wood  daubed  with  clay,  and  thatched 
with  straw  or  reeds.  They  had  no  windows,  and,  until 
the  invention  of  the  saw-mill,  very  few  had  wooden 
floors.  The  luxury  of  a  carpet  was  unknown;  some 
straw,  scattered  in  the  room,  supplied  its  place.  There 
were  no  chimneys;  the  smoke  of  the  ill-fed,  cheerless 
fire  escaped  through  a  hole  in  the  roof.  In  such  habi- 
tations there  was  scarcely  any  protection  from  the 
weather.  Xo  attempt  was  made  at  drainage,  but  the 
putrefying  garbage  and  rubbish  were  simply  thrown 
out  of  the  door.  Men,  women,  and  children,  slept  in 
the  same  apartment;  not  unfrequently,  domestic  ani- 
mals were  their  companions;  in  such  a  confusion  of  the 
family,  it  was  impossible  that  modesty  or  morality  could 
be  maintained.  The  bed  was  usually  a  bag  of  straw,  a 
wooden  log  served  as  a  pillow.  Personal  cleanliness 


EUROPE  AT  THE  REFORMATION.      265 

was  utterly  unknown;  great  officers  of  state,  even 
dignitaries  so  high  as  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
swarmed  with  vermin;  such,  it  is  related,  was  the  con- 
dition of  Thomas  a  Becket,  the  antagonist  of  an  Eng- 
lish king.  To  conceal  personal  impurity,  perfumes  were 
necessarily  and  profusely  used.  The  citizen  clothed 
himself  in  leather,  a  garment  which,  with  its  ever-accu- 
mulating impurity,  might  last  for  many  years.  He 
was  considered  to  be  in  circumstances  of  ease,  if  he 
could  procure  fresh  meat  once  a  week  for  his  dinner. 
The  streets  had  no  sewers;  they  were  without  pave- 
ment or  lamps.  After  nightfall,  the  chamber-shutters 
were  thrown  open,  and  slops  unceremoniously  emptied 
down,  to  the  discomfiture  of  the  wayfarer  tracking  his 
path  through  the  narrow  streets,  with  his  dismal  lantern 
in  his  hand. 

^Eneas  Sylvius,  who  afterward  became  Pope  Pius 
II.,  and  was  therefore  a  very  competent  and  impartial 
writer,  has  left  us  a  graphic  account  of  a  journey  he 
made  to  the  British  Islands,  about  1430.  He  describes 
the  houses  of  the  peasantry  as  constructed  of  stones  put 
together  without  mortar;  the  'roofs  were  of  turf,  a  stif- 
fened bull's-hide  served  for  a  door.  The  food  consisted 
of  coarse  vegetable  products,  such  as  peas, .  and  even 
the  bark  of  trees.  In  some  places  they  were  unac- 
quainted with  bread. 

Cabins  of  reeds  plastered  with  mud,  houses  of  wat- 
tled stakes,  chimneyless  peat-fires  from  which  there  was 
scarcely  an  escape  for  the  smoke,  dens  of  physical  and 
moral  pollution  swarming  with  vermin,  wisps  of  straw 
twisted  round  the  limbs  to  keep  off  the  cold,  the  ague- 
stricken  peasant  with  no  help  except  shrine-cure!  How 
was  it  possible  that  the  population  could  increase? 

Shall  we,  then,  wonder  that,  in  the  famine  of  1030, 


ii»;tj  DUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN   EUROPE. 

human  flesh  was  cooked  and  sold;  or  that,  in  that  of 
1258,  fifteen  thousand  persons  died  of  hunger  in  Lon- 
don? Shall  we  wonder  that,  in  some  of  the  invasions 
of  the  plague,  the  deaths  were  so  frightfully  numerous 
that  the  living  could  hardly  bury  the  dead?  By  that  of 
1348,  which  came  from  the  East  along  the  lines  of 
commercial  travel,  and  spread  all  over  Europe,  one- 
third  of  the  population  of  France  was  destroyed. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  peasantry,  and  of  the 
common  inhabitants  of  cities.  Not  much  better  was 
that  of  the  nobles.  William  of  Malmesbury,  speaking 
of  the  degraded  manners  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  says: 
"  Their  nobles,  devoted  to  gluttony  and  voluptuousness, 
never  visited  the  church,  but  the  matins  and  the  mass 
were  read  over  to  them  by  a  hurrying  priest  in  their 
bedchambers,  before  they  rose,  themselves  not  listening. 
The  common  people  were  a  prey  to  the  more  powerful; 
their  property  was  seized,  their  bodies  dragged  away  to 
distant  countries;  their  maidens  were  either  thrown  into 
a  brothel,  or  sold  for  slaves.  Drinking,  day  and  night, 
was  the  general  pursuit;  vices,  the  companions  of  ine- 
briety, followed,  effeminating  the  manly  mind."  The 
baronial  castles  were  dens  of  robbers.  The  Saxon 
chronicler  records  how  men  and  women  were  caught 
and  dragged  into  those  strongholds,  hung  up  by  their 
thumbs  or  feet,  fire  applied  to  them,  knotted  strings 
twisted  round  their  heads,  and  many  other  torments 
inflicted  to  extort  ransom. 

All  over  Europe,  the  great  and  profitable  political 
offices  were  filled  by  ecclesiastics.  In  every  country 
there  was  a  dual  government:  1.  That  of  a  local  kind, 
represented  by  a  temporal  sovereign;  2.  That  of  a  for- 
eign kind,  acknowledging  the  authority  of  the  pope. 
This  Roman  influence  was,  in  the  nature  of  things,  su- 


DUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  EUROPE.      267 

perior  to  the  local;  it  expressed  the  sovereign  will  of 
one  man  over  all  the  nations  of  the  continent  conjointly, 
and  gathered  overwhelming  power  from  its  compact- 
ness and  unity.  The  local  influence  was  necessarily  of 
a  feeble  nature,  since  it  was  commonly  weakened  by 
the  rivalries  of  conterminous  states,  and  the  dissensions 
dexterously  provoked  by  its  competitor.  On  not  a 
single  occasion  could  the  various  European  states  form 
a  coalition  against  their  common  antagonist.  When- 
ever a  question  arose,  they  were  skillfully  taken  in  de- 
tail, and  commonly  mastered.  The  ostensible  object  of 
papal  intrusion  was  to  secure  for  the  different  peoples 
moral  well-being;  the  real  object  was  to  obtain  large 
revenues,  and  give  support  to  vast  bodies  of  ecclesias- 
tics. The  revenues  thus  abstracted  were  not  infre- 
quently many  times  greater  than  those  passing  into  the 
treasury  of  the  local  power.  Thus,  on  the  occasion  of 
Innocent  IV.  demanding  provision  to  be  made  for  three 
hundred  additional  Italian  clergy  by  the  Church  of 
England,  and  that  one  of  his  nephews — a  mere  boy — 
should  have  a  stall  in  Lincoln  Cathedral,  it  was  found 
that  the  sum  already  annually  abstracted  by  foreign 
ecclesiastics  from  England  was  thrice  that  which  went 
into  the  coffers  of  the  king. 

"While  thus  the  higher  clergy  secured  every  political 
appointment  worth  having,  and  abbots  vied  with  counts 
in  the  herds  of  slaves  they  possessed — some,  it  is  said, 
owned  not  fewer  than  twenty  thousand — begging  friars 
pervaded  society  in  all  directions,  picking  up  a  share  of 
what  still  remained  to  the  poor.  There  was  a  vast  body 
of  non-producers,  living  in  idleness  and  owning  a  foreign 
allegiance,  who  were  subsisting  on  the  fruits  of  the  toil 
of  the  laborers.  It  could  not  be  otherwise  than  that 
small  farms  should  be  unceasingly  merged  into  the 


268  SOCIAL  CONDITION  OF  EUROPE. 

larger  estates;  that  the  poor  should  steadily  become 
poorer;  that  society,  far  from  improving,  should  exhibit 
a  continually  increasing  demoralization.  Outside  the 
monastic  institutions  no  attempt  at  intellectual  advance- 
ment was  made;  indeed,  so  far  as  the  laity  were  con- 
cerned, the  influence  of  the  Church  was  directed  to  an 
opposite  result,  for  the  maxim  universally  received  was, 
that  "  ignorance  is  the  mother  of  devotion.'' 

The  settled  practice  of  republican  and  imperial 
Rome  was  to  have  swift  communication  with  all  her 
outlying  provinces,  by  means  of  substantial  bridges  and 
roads.  One  of  the  prime  duties  of  the  legions  was  to 
construct  them  and  keep  them  in  repair.  By  this,  her 
military  authority  was  assured.  But  the  dominion  of 
papal  Rome,  depending  upon  a  different  principle,  had 
no  exigencies  of  that  kind,  and  this  duty  accordingly 
was  left  for  the  local  powers  to  neglect.  And  so,  in  all 
directions,  the  roads  were  almost  impassable  for  a  large 
part  of  the  year.  A  common  means  of  transportation 
was  in  clumsy  carts  drawn  by  oxen,  going  at  the  most 
but  three  or  four  miles  an  hour.  Where  boat-convey- 
ance along  rivers  could  not  be  had,  pack-horses  and 
mules  were  resorted  to  for  the  transportation  of  mer- 
chandise, an  adequate  means  for  the  slender  commerce 
of  the  times.  When  large  bodies  of  men  had  to  be 
moved,  the  difficulties  became  almost  insuperable.  Of 
this,  perhaps,  one  of  the  best  illustrations  may  be  found 
in  the  story  of  the  march  of  the  first  Crusaders.  These 
restraints  upon  intercommunication  tended  powerfully 
to  promote  the  general  benighted  condition.  Journeys 
by  individuals  could  not  be  undertaken  without  much 
risk,  for  there  was  scarcely  a  moor  or  a  forest  that  had 
not  its  highwaymen. 

An  illiterate  condition  everywhere  prevailing,  gave 


SOCIAL  CONDITION  OF  EUROPE.  269 

opportunity  for  the  development  of  superstition.  Eu- 
rope was  full  of  disgraceful  miracles.  On  all  the  roads 
pilgrims  were  wending  their  way  to  the  shrines  of  saints 
renowned  for  the  cures  they  had  wrought.  It  had  always 
been  the  policy  of  the  Church  to  discourage  the  physi- 
cian and  his  art;  he  interfered  too  much  with  the  gifts 
and  profits  of  the  shrines.  Time  has  brought  this  once 
lucrative  imposture  to  its  proper  value.  How  many 
shrines  are  there  now  in  successful  operation  in  Europe? 

For  patients  too  sick  to  move  or  be  moved,  there 
were  no  remedies  except  those  of  a  ghostly  kind — the 
Pater-noster  or  the  Ave.  For  the  prevention  of  dis- 
eases, prayers  were  put  up  in  the  churches,  but  no  sani- 
tary measures  were  resorted  to.  From  cities  reeking 
with  putrefying  filth  it  was  thought  that  the  plague 
might  be  stayed  by  the  prayers  of  the  priests,  by  them 
rain  and  dry  weather  might  be  secured,  and  deliverance 
obtained  from  the  baleful  influences  of  eclipses  and 
comets.  But  when  Halley's  comet  came,  in  145 G,  so 
tremendous  was  its  apparition  that  it  was  necessary  for 
the  pope  himself  to  interfere.  He  exorcised  and  ex- 
pelled it  from  the  skies.  It  slunk  away  into  the  abysses 
of  space,  terror-stricken  by  the  maledictions  of  Calixtus 
III.,  and  did  not  venture  back  for  seventy-five  years! 

The  physical  value  of  shrine-cures  and  ghostly  reme- 
dies is  measured  by  the  death-rate.  In  those  days  it 
was,  probably,  about  one  in  twenty-three,  under  the 
present  more  material  practice  it  is  about  one  in  forty. 

The  moral  condition  of  Europe  was  signally  illus- 
trated when  syphilis  was  introduced  from  the  West 
Indies  by  the  companions  of  Columbus.  It  spread  with 
wonderful  rapidity;  all  ranks  of  persons,  from  the  Holy 
Father  Leo  X.  to  the  beggar  by  the  wayside,  contract- 
ing the  shameful  disease.  Many  excused  their  misfor- 


270  SOCIAL  CONDITION  OP  EUROPE. 

tune  by  declaring  that  it  was  an  epidemic  proceeding 
from  a  certain  malignity  in  the  constitution  of  the  air, 
but  in  truth  its  spread  was  due  to  a  certain  infirmity  in 
the  constitution  of  man — an  infirmity,  which  had  not 
been  removed  by  the  spiritual  guidance  under  which  he 
had  been  living. 

To  the  medical  efficacy  of  shrines  must  be  added 
that  of  special  relics.  These  were  sometimes  of  the 
most  extraordinary  kind.  There  were  several  abbeys 
that  possessed  our  Savior's  crown  of  thorns.  Eleven  had 
the  lance  that  had  pierced  his  side.  If  any  person  was 
adventurous  enough  to  suggest  that  these  could  not  all 
be  authentic,  he  would  have  been  denounced  as  an 
atheist.  During  the  holy  wars  the  Templar-Knights  had 
driven  a  profitable  commerce  by  bringing  from  Jerusa- 
lem to  the  Crusading  armies  bottles  of  the  milk  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  which  they  sold  for  enormous  sums; 
these  bottles  were  preserved  with  pious  care  in  many  of 
the  great  religious  establishments.  But  perhaps  none 
of  these  impostures  surpassed  in  audacity  that  offered 
by  a  monastery  in  Jerusalem,  which  presented  to  the  be- 
holder one  of  the  fingers  of  the  Holy  Ghost!  Modern 
society  has  silently  rendered  its  verdict  on  these  scan- 
dalous objects.  Though  they  once  nourished  the  piety 
of  thousands  of  earnest  people,  they  are  now  considered 
too  vile  to  have  a  place  in  any  public  museum. 

How  shall  we  account  for  the  great  failure  we  thus 
detect  in  the  guardianship  of  the  Church  over  Europe? 
This  is  not  the  result  that  must  have  occurred  had  there 
been  in  Rome  an  unremitting  care  for  the  spiritual  and 
material  prosperity  of  the  continent,  had  the  universal 
pastor,  the  successor  of  Peter,  occupied  himself  with 
singleness  of  purpose  for  the  holiness  and  happiness  of 
his  flock. 


TRANSFORMATION  OF  THE  PAPACY.          271 

The  explanation  is  not  difficult  to  find.  It  is  con- 
tained in  a  story  of  sin  and  shame.  I  prefer,  therefore, 
in  the  following  paragraphs,  to  offer  explanatory  facts 
derived  from  Catholic  authors,  and,  indeed,  to  present 
them  as  nearly  as  I  can  in  the  words  of  those  writers. 

The  story  I  am  about  to  relate  is  a  narrative  of  the 
transformation  of  a  confederacy  into  an  absolute  mon- 
archy. 

In  the  early  times  every  church,  without  prejudice 
to  its  agreement  with  the  Church  universal  in  all  essen- 
tial points,  managed  its  own  affairs  with  perfect  free- 
dom and  independence,  maintaining  its  own  traditional 
usages  and  discipline,  all  questions  not  concerning  the 
whole  Church,  or  of  primary  importance,  being  settled 
on  the  spot. 

Until  the  beginning  of  the  ninth  century,  there  was 
no  change  in  the  constitution  of  the  Eoman  Church. 
But  about  845  the  Isidorian  Decretals  were  fabricated 
in  the  west  of  Gaul — a  forgery  containing  about  one 
hundred  pretended  decrees  of  the  early  popes,  together 
with  certain  spurious  writings  of  other  church  digni- 
taries and  acts  of  synods.  This  forgery  produced  an 
immense  extension  of  the  papal  power,  it  displaced  the 
old  system  of  church  government,  divesting  it  of  the 
republican  attributes  it  had  possessed,  and  transforming 
it  into  an  absolute  monarchy.  It  brought  the  bishops 
into  subjection  to  Eome,  and  made  the  pontiff  the 
supreme  judge  of  the  clergy  of  the  whole  Christian 
world.  It  prepared  the  way  for  the  great  attempt,  s\ib- 
sequently  made  by  Hildebrand,  to  convert  the  states  of 
Europe  into  a  theocratic  priest-kingdom,  with  the  pope 
at  its  head. 

Gregory  VII.,  the  author  of  this  great  attempt,  saw 


272          CENTRALIZATION  OP  THE  PAPACY. 

that  his  plans  would  be  best  carried  out  through  the 
agency  of  synods.  He  therefore  restricted  the  right 
of  holding  them  to  the  popes  and  their  legates.  To 
aid  in  the  matter,  a  new  system  of  church  law  was 
devised  by  Auselm  of  Lucca,  partly  from  the  old  Isi- 
dorian  forgeries,  and  partly  from  new  inventions.  To 
establish  the  supremacy  of  Rome,  not  only  had  a  new 
civil  and  a  new  canon  law  to  be  produced,  a  new  history 
had  also  to  be  invented.  This  furnished  needful  in- 
stances of  the  deposition  and  excommunication  of  kings, 
and  proved  that  they  had  always  been  subordinate  to 
the  popes.  The  decretal  letters  of  the  popes  were  put 
on  a  par  with  Scripture.  At  length  it  came  to  be  re- 
ceived, throughout  the  West,  that  the  popes  had  been, 
from  the  beginning  of  Christianity,  legislators  for  the 
whole  Church.  As  absolute  sovereigns  in  later  times 
cannot  endure  representative  assemblies,  so  the  papacy, 
when  it  wished  to  become  absolute,  found  that  the 
synods  of  particular  national  churches  must  be  put  an 
end  to,  and  those  only  under  the  immediate  control  of 
the  pontiff  permitted.  This,  in  itself,  constituted  a 
great  revolution. 

Another  fiction  concocted  in  Rome  in  the  eighth  cen- 
tury led  to  important  consequences.  It  feigned  that 
the  Emperor  Constantine,  in  gratitude  for  his  cure  from 
leprosy,  and  baptism  by  Pope  Sylvester,  had  bestowed 
Italy  and  the  Western  provinces  on  the  pope,  and  that, 
in  token  of  his  subordination,  he  had  served  the  pope 
as  his  groom,  and  led  his  horse  some  distance.  This 
forgery  was  intended  to  work  on  the  Prankish  kings, 
to  impress  them  with  a  correct  idea  of  their  inferiority, 
and  to  show  that,  in  the  territorial  concessions  they 
made  to  the  Church,  they  were  not  giving  but  only  re- 
storing what  rightfully  belonged  to  it. 


CENTRALIZATION  OF  THE  PAPACY.  273 

The  most  potent  instrument  of  the  new  papal  system 
was  Gratian's  Decretum,  which  was  issued  about  the 
middle  of  the  twelfth  century.  It  was  a  mass  of  fabrica- 
tions. It  made  the  whole  Christian  world,  through  the 
papacy,  the  domain  of  the  Italian  clergy.  It  inculcated 
that  it  is  lawful  to  constrain  men  to  goodness,  to  torture 
and  execute  heretics,  and  to  confiscate  their  property; 
that  to  kill  an  excommunicated  person  is  not  murder; 
that  the  pope,  in  his  unlimited  superiority  to  all  law, 
stands  on  an  equality  with  the  Son  of  God! 

As  the  new  system  of  centralization  developed, 
maxims,  that  in  the  olden  times  would  have  been  held  to 
be  shocking,  were  boldly  avowed — the  whole  Church 
is  the  property  of  the  pope  to  do  with  as  he  will;  what 
is  simony  in  others  is  not  simony  in  him;  he  is  above 
all  law,  and  can  be  called  to  account  by  none;  who- 
ever disobeys  him  must  be  put  to  death;  every  bap- 
tized man  is  his  subject,  and  must  for  life  remain  so, 
whether  he  will  or  not.  Up  to  the  end  of  the  twelfth 
century,  the  popes  were  the  vicars  of  Peter;  after  Inno- 
cent III.  they  were  the  vicars  of  Christ. 

But  an  absolute  sovereign  has  need  of  revenues,  and 
to  this  the  popes  were  no  exception.  The  institution 
of  legates  was  brought  in  from  Hildebrand's  time. 
Sometimes  their  duty  was  to  visit  churches,  sometimes 
they  were  sent  on  special  business,  but  always  invested 
with  unlimited  powers  to  bring  back  money  over  the 
Alps.  And  since  the  pope  could  not  only  make  laws, 
but  could  suspend  their  operation,  a  legislation  was  in- 
troduced in  view  to  the  purchase  of  dispensations. 
Monasteries  were  exempted  from  episcopal  jurisdiction 
on  payment  of  a  tribute  to  Rome.  The  pope  had  now 
become  "  the  universal  bishop; "  he  had  a  concurrent 
jurisdiction  in  all  the  dioceses,  and  could  bring  any 


274    CENTRALIZATION  OP  THE  PAPACY. 

cases  before  his  own  courts.  His  relation  to  the  bishops 
was  that  of  an  absolute  sovereign  to  his  officials.  A 
bishop  could  resign  only  by  his  permission,  and  sees 
vacated  by  resignation  lapsed  to  him.  Appeals  to  him 
were  encouraged  in  every  way  for  the  sake  of  the 
dispensations;  thousands  of  processes  came  before  the 
Curia,  bringing  a  rich  harvest  to  Rome.  Often  when 
there  were  disputing  claimants  to  benefices,  the  pope 
would  oust  them  all,  and  appoint  a  creature  of  his  own. 
Often  the  candidates  had  to  waste  years  in  Rome,  and 
either  died  there,  or  carried  back  a  vivid  impression  of 
the  dominant  corruption.  Germany  suffered  more  than 
other  countries  from  these  appeals  and  processes,  and 
hence  of  all  countries  was  best  prepared  for  the  Ref- 
ormation. During  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  cen- 
turies the  popes  made  gigantic  strides  in  the  acquisition 
of  power.  Instead  of  recommending  their  favorites  for 
benefices,  now  they  issued  mandates.  Their  Italian  par- 
tisans must  be  rewarded;  nothing  could  be  done  to  sat- 
isfy their  clamors,  but  to  provide  for  them  in  foreign 
countries.  Shoals  of  contesting  claimants  died  in  Rome; 
and,  when  death  took  place  in  that  city,  the  Pope 
claimed  the  right  of  giving  away  the  benefices.  At 
length  it  was  affirmed  that  he  had  the  right  of  dispos- 
ing of  all  church-offices  without  distinction,  and  that 
the  oath  of  obedience  of  a  bishop  to  him  implied  politi- 
cal as  well  as  ecclesiastical  subjection.  In  countries 
having  a  dual  government  this  increased  the  power  of 
the  spiritual  element  prodigiously. 

Rights  of  every  kind  were  remorselessly  overthrown 
to  complete  this  centralization.  In  this  the  mendicant 
orders  were  most  efficient  aids.  It  was  the  pope  and 
those  orders  on  one  side,  the  bishops  and  the  paro- 
chial clergy  on  the  other.  The  Roman  court  had  seized 


PECUNIARY  NECESSITIES  OF  THE  PAPACY.  275 

the  rights  of  synods,  metropolitans,  bishops,  national 
churches.  Incessantly  interfered  with  by  the  legates, 
the  bishops  lost  all  desire  to  discipline  their  dioceses; 
incessantly  interfered  with  by  the  begging  monks,  the 
parish  priest  had  become  powerless  in  his  own  village; 
his  pastoral  influence  was  utterly  destroyed  by  the  pa- 
pal indulgences  and  absolutions  they  sold.  The  money 
was  carried  off  to  Home. 

Pecuniary  necessities  urged  many  of  the  popes  to 
resort  to  such  petty  expedients  as  to  require  from  a 
prince,  a  bishop,  or  a  grand-master,  who  had  a  cause 
pending  in  the  court,  a  present  of  a  golden  cup  filled 
with  ducats.  Such  necessities  also  gave  origin  to  ju- 
bilees. Sixtus  IV.  established  whole  colleges,  and  sold 
the  places  at  three  or  four  hundred  ducats.  Innocent 
VIII.  pawned  the  papal  tiara.  Of  Leo  X.  it  was  said 
that  he  squandered  the  revenues  of  three  popes,  he 
wasted  the  savings  of  his  predecessor,  he  spent  his  own 
income,  he  anticipated  that  of  his  successor,  he  created 
twenty-one  hundred  and  fifty  new  offices  and  sold  them; 
they  were  considered  to  be  a  good  investment,  as  they 
produced  twelve  per  cent.  The  interest  was  extorted 
from  Catholic  countries.  Nowhere  in  Europe  could 
capital  be  so  well  invested  as  at  Eome.  Large  sums 
were  raised  by  the  foreclosing  of  mortgages,  and  not 
only  by  the  sale  but  the  resale  of  offices.  Men  were 
promoted,  for  the  purpose  of  selling  their  offices  again. 

Though  against  the  papal  theory,  which  denounced 
usurious  practices,  an  immense  papal  banking  system 
had  sprung  up,  in  connection  with  the  Curia,  and  sums 
at  usurious  interest  were  advanced  to  prelates,  place- 
hunters,  and  litigants.  The  papal  bankers  were  privi- 
leged; all  others  were  under  the  ban.  The  Curia  had 
discovered  that  it  was  for  their  interest  to  have  ecclesi- 


276  THE   RAISING   OF  REVENU1 

astics  all  over  Europe  in  their  debt.  They  could  make 
them  pliant,  and  excommunicate  them  for  non-payment 
of  interest.  In  1327  it  was  reckoned  that  half  the 
Christian  world  was  under  excommunication:  bishops 
were  excommunicated  because  they  could  not  meet  the 
extortions  of  legates;  and  persons  were  excommunicated, 
under  various  pretenses,  to  compel  them  to  purchase  ab- 
solution at  an  exorbitant  price.  The  ecclesiastical  reve- 
nues of  all  Europe  were  flowing  into  Rome,  a  sink  of 
corruption,  simony,  usury,  bribery,  extortion.  The 
popes,  since  1066,  when  the  great  centralizing  move- 
ment began,  had  no  time  to  pay  attention  to  the  inter- 
nal affairs  of  their  own  special  flock  in  the  city  of  Rome. 
There  were  thousands  of  foreign  cases,  each  bringing  in 
money.  "  Whenever,"  says  the  Bishop  Alvaro  Pelayo, 
"  I  entered  the  apartments  of  the  Roman  court  clergy,  I 
found  them  occupied  in  counting  up  the  gold-coin, 
which  lay  about  the  rooms  in  heaps."  Every  opportu- 
nity of  extending  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Curia  was  wel- 
come. Exemptions  were  so  managed  that  fresh  grants 
were  constantly  necessary.  Bishops  were  privileged 
against  cathedral  chapters,  chapters  against  their  bish- 
ops; bishops,  convents,  and  individuals,  against  the  ex- 
tortions of  legates. 

The  two  pillars  on  which  the  papal  system  now  rest- 
ed were  the  College  of  Cardinals  and  the  Curia.  The 
cardinals,  in  1059,  had  become  electors  of  the  popes. 
Tip  to  that  time  elections  were  made  by  the  whole  body 
of  the  Roman  clergy,  and  the  concurrence  of  the  magis- 
trates and  citizens  was  necessary.  But  Nicolas  II.  re- 
stricted elections  to  the  College  of  Cardinals  by  a  two- 
thirds  vote,  and  gave  to  the  German  emperor  the  right 
of  confirmation.  For  almost  two  centuries  there  was  a 
struggle  for  mastery  between  the  cardinal  oligarchy  and 


THE  POPE  AND  THE  CARDINALS.  277 

papal  absolutism.  The  cardinals  were  willing  enough 
that  the  pope  should  be  absolute  in  his  foreign  rule,  but 
they  never  failed  to  attempt,  before  giving  him  their 
votes,  to  bind  him  to  accord  to  them  a  recognized  share 
in  the  government.  After  his  election,  and  before  his 
consecration,  he  swore  to  observe  certain  capitulations, 
such  as  a  participation  of  revenues  between  himself  and 
the  cardinals;  an  obligation  that  lie  would  not  remove 
them,  but  would  permit  them  to  assemble  twice  a  year 
to  discuss  whether  he  had  kept  his  oath.  Kepeatedly 
the  popes  broke  their  oath.  On  one  side,  the  cardinals 
wanted  a  larger  share  in  the  church  government  and 
emoluments;  on  the  other,  the  popes  refused  to  surren- 
der revenues  or  power.  The  cardinals  wanted  to  be 
conspicuous  in  pomp  and  extravagance,  and  for  this  vast 
sums  were  requisite.  In  one  instance,  not  fewer  than 
five  hundred  benefices  were  held  by  one  of  them;  their 
friends  and  retainers  mtj,st  be  supplied,  their  families 
enriched.  It  was  affirmed  that  the  whole  revenues  of 
France  were  insufficient  to  meet  their  expenditures.  In 
their  rivalries  it  sometimes  happened  that  no  pope  was 
elected  for  several  years.  It  seemed  as  if  they  wanted 
to  show  how  easily  the  Church  could  get  on  without  the 
Vicar  of  Christ. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  eleventh  century  the  Ro- 
man Church  became  the  Roman  court.  In  place  of  the 
Christian  sheep  gently  following  their  shepherd  in  the 
holy  precincts  of  the  city,  there  had  arisen  a  chancery  of 
writers,  notaries,  tax-gatherers,  where  transactions  about 
privileges,  dispensations,  exemptions,  were  carried  on; 
and  suitors  went  with  petitions  from  door  to  door. 
Rome  was  a  rallying-point  for  place-hunters  of  every 
nation.  In  presence  of  the  enormous  mass  of  business- 
processes,  graces,  indulgences,  absolutions,  commands, 
20 


;>7s  PECUNIARY  DEMORALIZATION. 

and  decisions,  addressed  to  all  parts  of  Europe  and  Asia, 
the  functions  of  the  local  church  sank  into  insignifi- 
cance. Several  hundred  persons,  whose  home  was  the 
Curia,  were  required.  Their  aim  was  to  rise  in  it 
by  enlarging  the  profits  of  the  papal  treasury.  The 
whole  Christian  world  had  become  tributary  to  it. 
Here  every  vestige  of  religion  had  disappeared;  its 
members  were  busy  with  politics,  litigations,  and  pro- 
cesses; not  a  word  could  be  heard  about  spiritual  con- 
cerns. Every  stroke  of  the  pen  had  its  price.  Bene- 
fices, dispensations,  licenses,  absohitions,  indulgences, 
privileges,  were  bought  and  sold  like  merchandise.  The 
suitor  had  to  bribe  every  one,  from  the  doorkeeper  to 
the  pope,  or  his  case  was  lost.  Poor  men  could  neither 
attain  preferment,  nor  hope  for  it;  and  the  result  was, 
that  every  cleric  felt  he  had  a  right  to  follow  the  exam- 
ple he  had  seen  at  Rome,  and  that  he  might  make  profits 
out  of  his  spiritual  ministries  and  sacraments,  having 
bought  the  right  to  do  so  at  Rome,  and  having  no  other 
way  to  pay  off  his  debt.  The  transference  of  power 
from  Italians  to  Frenchmen,  through  the  removal  of 
the  Curia  to  Avignon,  produced  no  change — only  the 
Italians  felt  that  the  enrichment  of  Italian  families  had 
slipped  out  of  their  grasp.  They  had  learned  to  con- 
sider the  papacy  as  their  appanage,  and  that  they,  un- 
der the  Christian  dispensation,  were  God's  chosen  peo- 
ple, as  the  Jews  had  been  under  the  Mosaic. 

At  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  a  new  kingdom 
was  discovered,  capable  of  yielding  immense  revenues. 
This  was  Purgatory.  It  was  shown  that  the  pope  could 
empty  it  by  his  indulgences.  In  this  there  was  no  need 
of  hypocrisy.  Things  were  done  openly.  The  original 
germ  of  the  apostolic  primacy  had  now  expanded  into 
a  colossal  monarchy. 


NEED  OF  A  GENERAL  COUNCIL.  379 

The  Inquisition  had  made  the  papal  system  irre- 
sistible. All  opposition  must  be  punished  with  death 
by  fire.  A  mere  thought,  without  having  betrayed  it- 
self by  outward  sign,  was  considered  as  guilt.  As  time 
went  on,  this  practice  of  the  Inquisition  became  more 
and  more  atrocious.  Torture  was  resorted  to  on  mere 
suspicion.  The  accused  was  not  allowed  to  know  the 
name  of  his  accuser.  He  was  not  permitted  to  have 
any  legal  adviser.  There  was  no  appeal.  The  Inquisi- 
tion was  ordered  not  to  lean  to  pity.  No  recantation 
was  of  avail.  The  innocent  family  of  the  accused  was 
deprived  of  its  property  by  confiscation;  half  went  to 
the  papal  treasury,  half  to  the  inquisitors.  Life  only, 
said  Innocent  III.,  was  to  be  left  to  the  sons  of  misbe- 
lievers, and  that  merely  as  an  act  of  mercy.  The  con- 
sequence was,  that  popes,  such  as  Nicolas  III.,  enriched 
their  families  through  plunder  acquired  by  this  tribunal. 
Inquisitors  did  the  same  habitually. 

The  struggle  between  the  French  and  Italians  for 
the  possession  of  the  papacy  inevitably  led  to  the  schism 
of  the  fourteenth  century.  For  more  than  forty  years 
two  rival  popes  were  now  anathematizing  each  other, 
two  rival  Curias  were  squeezing  the  nations  for  money. 
Eventually,  there  were  three  obediences,  and  triple 
revenues  to  be  extorted.  Nobody,  now,  could  guarantee 
the  validity  of  the  sacraments,  for  nobody  could  be  sure 
which  was  the  true  pope.  Men  were  thus  compelled  to 
think  for  themselves.  They  could  not  find  who  was  the 
legitimate  thinker  for  them.  They  began  to  see  that 
the  Church  must  rid  herself  of  the  curialistic  chains, 
and  resort  to  a  General  Council.  That  attempt  was 
again  and  again  made,  the  intention  being  to  raise  the 
Council  into  a  Parliament  of  Christendom,  and  make 
the  pope  its  chief  executive  officer.  But  the  vast  inter- 


280          HOPELESSNESS  OP  THE  CONDITION. 

ests  that  had  grown  out  of  the  corruption  of  ages  could 
not  so  easily  be  overcome;  the  Curia  again  recovered  its 
ascendency,  and  ecclesiastical  trading  was  resumed.  The 
Germans,  who  had  never  been  permitted  to  share  in  the 
Curia,  took  the  leading  part  in  these  attempts  at  reform. 
As  things  went  on  from  bad  to  worse,  even  they  at  last 
found  out  that  all  hope  of  reforming  the  Church  by 
means  of  councils  was  delusive.  Erasmus  exclaimed, 
"  If  Christ  does  not  deliver  his  people  from  this  multi- 
form ecclesiastical  tyranny,  the  tyranny  of  the  Turk  will 
become  less  intolerable."  Cardinals'  hats  were  now 
sold,  and  under  Leo  X.  ecclesiastical  and  religious. offices 
were  actually  put  up  to  auction.  The  maxim  of  life  had 
become,  interest  first,  honor  afterward.  Among  the 
officials,  there  was  not  one  who  could  be  honest  in  the 
dark,  and  virtuous  without  a  witness.  The  violet-col- 
ored velvet  cloaks  and  white  ermine  capes  of  the  cardi- 
nals were  truly  a  cover  for  wickedness. 

The  unity  of  the  Church,  and  therefore  its  power,  re- 
quired the  use  of  Latin  as  a  sacred  language.  Through 
this,  Rome  had  stood  in  an  attitude  strictly  European, 
and  was  enabled  to  maintain  a  general  international  re- 
lation. It  gave  her  far  more  power  than  her  asserted 
celestial  authority,  and,  much  as  she  claims  to  have 
done,  she  is  open  to  condemnation  that,  with  such  a 
signal  advantage  in  her  hands,  never  again  to  be  en- 
joyed by  any  successor,  she  did  not  accomplish  much 
more.  Had  not  the  sovereign  pontiffs  been  so  com- 
pletely occupied  with  maintaining  their  emoluments 
and  temporalities  in  Italy,  they  might  have  made  the 
whole  continent  advance  like  one  man.  Their  officials 
could  pass  without  difficulty  into  every  nation,  and 
communicate  without  embarrassment  with  each  other, 
from  Ireland  to  Bohemia,  from  Italy  to  Scotland.  The 


LATIN  AS  A  SACRED  LANGUAGE.  281 

possession  of  a  common  tongue  gave  them  the  adminis- 
tration of  international  affairs  with  intelligent  allies 
everywhere,  speaking  the  same  language. 

Not  without  cause  was  the  hatred  manifested  by 
Home  to  the  restoration  of  Greek  and  introduction  of 
Hebrew,  and  the  alarm  with  which  she  perceived  the 
modern  languages  forming  out  of  the  vulgar  dialects. 
Not  without  reason  did  the  Faculty  of  Theology  in  Paris 
reecho  the  sentiment  that  was  prevalent  in  the  time  of 
Ximenes,  "  What  will  become  of  religion  if  the  study  of 
Greek  and  Hebrew  be  permitted?"  The  prevalence  of 
Latin  was  the  condition  of  her  power;  its  deterioration, 
the  measure  of  her  decay;  its  disuse,  the  signal  of  her 
limitation  to  a  little  principality  in  Italy.  In  fact,  the 
development  of  European  languages  was  the  instrument 
of  her  overthrow.  They  formed  an  effectual  communica- 
tion between  the  mendicant  friars  and  the  illiterate  pop- 
ulace, and  there  was  not  one  of  them  that  did  not  dis- 
play in  its  earliest  productions  a  sovereign  contempt  for 
her. 

The  rise  of  the  many-tongued  European  literature 
was  therefore  coincident  with  the  decline  of  papal  Chris- 
tianity; European  literature  was  impossible  under  Cath- 
olic rule.  A  grand,  a  solemn,  an  imposing  religious 
unity  enforced  the  literary  unity  which  is  implied  in  the 
use  of  a  single  tongue. 

While  thus  the  possession  of  a  universal  language 
so  signally  secured  her  power,  the  real  secret  of  much  of 
the  influence  of  the  Church  lay  in  the  control  she  had 
so  skillfully  obtained  over  domestic  life.  Her  influence 
diminished  as  that  declined.  Coincident  with  this  was 
her  displacement  in  the  guidance  of  international  rela- 
tions by  diplomacy. 

In  the  old  times  of  Roman  domination  the  encamp- 


282  CATHOLICITY  AND  CIVILIZATION. 

ments  of  the  legions  in  the  provinces  had  always  proved 
to  be  foci  of  civilization.  The  industry  and  order  ex- 
hibited in  them  presented  an  example  not  lost  on  the 
surrounding  barbarians  of  Britain,  Gaul,  and  Germany. 
And,  though  it  was  no  part  of  their  duty  to  occupy 
themselves  actively  in  the  betterment  of  the  conquered 
tribes,  but  rather  to  keep  them  in  a  depressed  condition, 
that  aided  in  maintaining  subjection,  a  steady  improve- 
ment both  in  the  individual  and  social  condition  took 
place. 

Under  the  ecclesiastical  domination  of  Rome  similar 
effects  occurred.  In  the  open  country  the  monastery 
replaced  the  legionary  encampment;  in  the  village  or 
town,  the  church  was  a  centre  of  light.  A  powerful 
effect  was  produced  by  the  elegant  luxury  of  the  former, 
and  by  the  sacred  and  solemn  monitions  of  the  latter. 

In  extolling  the  papal  system  for  what  it  did  in  the 
organization  of  the  family,  the  definition  of  civil  policy, 
the  construction  of  the  states  of  Europe,  our  praise 
must  be  limited  by  the  recollection  that  the  chief  object 
of  ecclesiastical  policy  was  the  aggrandizement  of  the 
Church,  not  the  promotion  of  civilization.  The  benefit 
obtained  by  the  laity  was  not  through  any  special  inten- 
tion, but  incidental  or  collateral. 

There  was  no  far-reaching,  no  persistent  plan  to 
ameliorate  the  physical  condition  of  the  nations.  Noth- 
ing was  done  to  favor  their  intellectual  development; 
indeed,  on  the  contrary,  it  was  the  settled  policy  to  keep 
them  not  merely  illiterate,  but  ignorant.  Century  after 
century  passed  away,  and  left  the  peasantry  but  little 
better  than  the  cattle  in  the  fields.  Intercommunica- 
tion and  locomotion,  which  tend  so  powerfully  to  expand 
the  ideas,  received  no  encouragement;  the  majority  of 
men  died  without  ever  having  ventured  out  of  the 


CATHOLICITY  AND  CIVILIZATION.  283 

neighborhood  in  which  they  were  born.  For  them 
there  was  no  hope  of  personal  improvement,  none  of 
the  bettering  of  their  lot;  there  were  no  comprehensive 
schemes  for  the  avoidance  of  individual  want,  none  for 
the  resistance  of  famines.  Pestilences  were  permitted  to 
stalk  forth  unchecked,  or  at  best  opposed  only  by  mum- 
meries. Bad  food,  wretched  clothing,  inadequate  shel- 
ter, were  suffered  to  produce  their  result,  and  at  the  end 
of  a  thousand  years  the  population  of  Europe  had  not 
doubled. 

If  policy  may  be  held  accountable  as  much  for  the 
births  it  prevents  as  for  the  deaths  it  occasions,  what  a 
great  responsibility  there  is  here! 

In  this  investigation  of  the  influence  of  Catholicism, 
we  must  carefully  keep  separate  what  it  did  for  the 
people  and  what  it  did  for  itself.  When  we  think  of 
the  stately  monastery,  an  embodiment  of  luxury,  with 
its  closely-mown  lawns,  its  gardens  and  bowers,  its  foun- 
tains and  many  murmuring  streams,  we  must  connect  it 
not  with  the  ague-stricken  peasant  dying  without  help 
in  the  fens,  but  with  the  abbot,  his  ambling  palfrey, 
his  hawk  and  hounds,  his  well-stocked  cellar  and  larder. 
He  is  part  of  a  system  that  has  its  centre  of  authority 
in  Italy.  To  that  his  allegiance  is  due.  For  its  behoof 
are  all  his  acts.  When  we  survey,  as  still  we  may,  the 
magnificent  churches  and  cathedrals  of  those  times, 
miracles  of  architectural  skill — the  only  real  miracles 
of  Catholicism — when  in  imagination  we  restore  the 
transcendently  imposing,  the  noble  services  of  which 
they  were  once  the  scene,  the  dim,  religious  light  stream- 
ing in  through  the  many-colored  windows,  the  sounds 
of  voices  not  inferior  in  their  melody  to  those  of  heaven, 
the  priests  in  their  sacred  vestments,  and  above  all  the 
prostrate  worshipers  listening  to  litanies  and  prayers  in 


284  CATHOLICITY  AND  CIVILIZATION. 

a  foreign  and  unknown  tongue,  shall  we  not  ask  our- 
selves, Was  all  this  for  the  sake  of  those  worshipers,  or 
for  the  glory  of  the  great,  the  overshadowing  authority 
at  Rome? 

But  perhaps  some  one  may  say,  Are  there  not  limits 
to  human  exertion — things  which  no  political  system, 
no  human  power,  no  matter  how  excellent  its  intention, 
can  accomplish?  Men  cannot  be  raised  from  barbarism, 
a  continent  cannot  be  civilized,  in  a  day! 

The  Catholic  power  is  not,  however,  to  be  tried  by 
any  such  standard.  It  scornfully  rejected  and  still  re- 
jects a  human  origin.  It  claims  to  be  accredited  super- 
naturally.  The  sovereign  pontiff  is  the  Vicar  of  God 
upon  earth.  Infallible  in  judgment,  it  is  given  to  him 
to  accomplish  all  things  by  miracle  if  need  be.  He  had 
exercised  an  autocratic  tyranny  over  the  intellect  of 
Europe  for  more  than  a  thousand  years;  and,  though  on 
some  occasions  he  had  encountered  the  resistances  of 
disobedient  princes,  these,  in  the  aggregate,  were  of  so 
little  moment,  that  the  physical,  the  political  power  of 
the  continent  may  be  affirmed  to  have  been  at  his  dis- 
posal. 

Such  facts  as  have  been  presented  in  this  chapter 
were,  doubtless,  well  weighed  by  the  Protestant  Reform- 
ers of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  brought  them  to  the 
conclusion  that  Catholicism  had  altogether  failed  in  its 
mission;  that  it  had  become  a  vast  system  of  delusion 
and  imposture,  and  that  a  restoration  of  true  Christian- 
ity could  only  be  accomplished  by  returning  to  the  faith 
and  practices  of  the  primitive  times.  This  was  no  deci- 
sion suddenly  arrived  at;  it  had  long  been  the  opinion  of 
many  religious  and  learned  men.  The  pious  Fratricelli 
in  the  middle  ages  had  loudly  expressed  their  belief  that 
the  fatal  gift  of  a  Roman  emperor  had  been  the  doom 


CATHOLICITY  AND  CIVILIZATION.  285 

of  true  religion.  It  wanted  nothing  more  than  the 
voice  of  Luther  to  bring  men  throughout  the  north  of 
Europe  to  the  determination  that  the  worship  of  the 
Virgin  Mary,  the  invocation  of  saints,  the  working  of 
miracles,  supernatural  cures  of  the  sick,  the  purchase  of 
indulgences  for  the  perpetration  of  sin,  and  all  other 
evil  practices,  lucrative  to  their  abettors,  which  had  been 
fastened  on  Christianity,  but  which  were  no  part  of  it, 
should  come  to  an  end.  Catholicism,  as  a  system  for 
promoting  the  well-being  of  man,  had  plainly  failed  in 
justifying  its  alleged  origin;  its  performance  had  not 
corresponded  to  its  great  pretensions;  and,  after  an  op- 
portunity of  more  than  a  thousand  years'  duration,  it 
had  left  the  masses  of  men  submitted  to  its  influences, 
both  as  regards  physical  well-being  and  intellectual  cult- 
ure, in  a  condition  far  lower  than  what  it  ought  to  have 
been. 


CHAPTER   XI. 

SCIENCE   IN    RELATION   TO   MODERN    CIVILIZATION. 

Illustration  of  th«  general  influences  of  Science  from  the  history 
of  America. 

THE  INTRODUCTION  OF  SCIENCE  INTO  EUROPE. — It  passed  from 
Moorish  Spain  to  Upper  Italy,  and  was  favored  by  the  ab- 
sence of  the  popes  at  Avignon. — The  effects  of  printing,  of 
maritime  adventure,  and  of  the  Reformation. — Establishment 
of  the  Italian  scientific  societies. 

THE  INTELLECTUAL  INFLUENCE  OF  SCIENCE. — It  changed  the  mode 
and  the  direction  of  thought  in  Europe. — The  transactions  of 
the  Royal  Society  of  London,  and  other  scientific  societies, 
furnish  an  illustration  of  this. 

THE  ECONOMICAL  INFLUENCE  OF  SCIENCE  is  illustrated  by  the 
numerous  mechanical  and  physical  inventions,  made  since 
the  fourteenth  century. — Their  influence  on  health  and  domes- 
tic life,  on  the  arts  of  peace  and  of  war. 

Answer  to  the  question,  What  has  Science  done  for  humanity  f 

EUROPE,  at  the  epoch  of  the  Reformation,  furnishes 
us  with  the  result  of  the  inflnences  of  Roman  Christian- 
ity in  the  promotion  of  civilization.  America,  examined 
in  like  manner  at  the  present  time,  furnishes  us  with  an 
illustration  of  the  influences  of  science. 

In  the  course  of  the  seventeenth  century  a  sparse 
European  population  had  settled  along  the  western  At- 
lantic coast.  Attracted  by  the  cod-fishery  of  Newfound- 
land, the  French  had  a  little  colony  north  of  the  St. 
Lawrence;  the  English,  Dutch,  and  Swedes,  occupied 
the  shore  of  New  England  and  the  Middle  States;  some 

286 


SCIENCE  AND  CIVILIZATION.  287 

Huguenots  were  living  in  the  Carolinas.  Kumors  of  a 
spring  that  could  confer  perpetual  youth — a  fountain  of 
life — had  brought,  a  few  Spaniards  into  Florida.  Be- 
hind the  fringe  of  villages  which  these  adventurers  had 
built  lay  a  vast  and  unknown  country,  inhabited  by 
wandering  Indians,  whose  numbers  from  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico  to  the  St.  Lawrence  did  not  exceed  one  hundred 
and  eighty  thousand.  From  them  the  European  stran- 
gers had  learned  that  in  those  solitary  regions  there 
were  fresh-water  seas,  and  a  great  river  which  they 
called  the  Mississippi.  Some  said  that  it  flowed  through 
Virginia  into  the  Atlantic,  some  that  it  passed  through 
Florida,  some  that  it  emptied  into  the  Pacific,  and  some 
that  it  reached  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Parted  from  their 
native  countries  by  the  stormy  Atlantic,  to  cross  which 
implied  a  voyage  of  many  months,  these  refugees  seemed 
lost  to  the  world. 

But  before  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century  the 
descendants  of  this  feeble  people  had  become  one  of 
the  great  powers  of  the  earth.  They  had  established  a 
republic  whose  sway  extended  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific.  With  an  army  of  more  than  a  million  men,  not 
on  paper,  but  actually  in  the  field,  they  had  overthrown 
a  domestic  assailant.  They  had  maintained  at  sea  a 
war-fleet  of  nearly  seven  hundred  ships,  carrying  five 
thousand  guns,  some  of  them  the  heaviest  in  the  world. 
The  tonnage  of  this  navy  amounted  to  half  a  million. 
In  the  defense  of  their  national  life  they  had  expended 
in  less  than  five  years  more  than  four  thousand  million 
dollars.  Their  census,  periodically  taken,  showed  that 
the  population  was  doubling  itself  every  twenty-five 
years;  it  justified  the  expectation  that  at  the  close  of 
that  century  it  would  number  nearly  one  hundred  mill- 
ion souls. 


288  KNOWLEDGE  IS  POWER. 

A  silent  continent  had  been  changed  into  a  scene  of 
industry;  it  was  full  of  the  din  of  machinery  and  the 
restless  moving  of  men.  Where  there  had  been  an  un- 
broken forest,  there  were  hundreds  of  cities  and  towns. 
To  commerce  were  furnished  in  profusion  some  of  the 
most  important  staples,  as  cotton,  tobacco,  breadstuffs. 
The  mines  yielded  incredible  quantities  of  gold,  iron, 
coal.  Countless  churches,  colleges,  and  public  schools, 
testified  that  a  moral  influence  vivified  this  material  ac- 
tivity. Locomotion  was  effectually  provided  for.  The 
railways  exceeded  in  aggregate  length  those  of  all  Eu- 
rope combined.  In  1873  the  aggregate  length  of  the 
European  railways  was  sixty-three  thousand  three  hun- 
dred and  sixty  miles,  that  of  the  American  was  seventy 
thousand  six  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  One  of  them, 
built  across  the  continent,  connected  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific  Oceans. 

But  not  alone  are  these  material  results  worthy  of 
notice.  Others  of  a  moral  and  social  kind  force  them- 
selves on  our  attention.  Four  million  negro  slaves 
had  been  set  free.  Legislation,  if  it  inclined  to  the 
advantage  of  any  class,  inclined  to  that  of  the  poor. 
Its  intention  was  to  raise  them  from  poverty,  and  bet- 
ter their  lot.  A  career  was  open  to  talent,  and  that 
without  any  restraint.  Every  thing  was  possible  to  in- 
telligence and  industry.  Many  of  the  most  important 
public  offices  were  filled  by  men  who  had  risen  from 
the  humblest  walks  of  life.  If  there  was  not  social 
equality,  as  there  never  can  be  in  rich  and  prosperous 
communities,  there  was  civil  equality,  rigorously  main- 
tained. 

It  may  perhaps  be  said  that  much  of  this  material 
prosperity  arose  from  special  conditions,  such  as  had 
never  occurred  in  the  case  of  any  people  before.  There 


ILLUSTRATIONS  PROM   AMERICAN  HISTORY.  289 

was  a  vast,  an  open  theatre  of  action,  a  whole  continent 
ready  for  any  who  chose  to  take  possession  of  it.  Noth- 
ing more  than  courage  and  industry  was  needed  to  over- 
come Nature,  and  to  seize  the  abounding  advantages 
she  offered. 

But  must  not  men  be  animated  by  a  great  principle 
who  successfully  transform  the  primeval  solitudes  into 
an  abode  of  civilization,  who  are  not  dismayed  by  gloomy 
forests,  or  rivers,  mountains,  or  frightful  deserts,  who 
push  their  conquering  way  in  the  course  of  a  century 
across  a  continent,  and  hold  it  in  subjection?  Let  us 
contrast  with  this  the  results  of  the  invasion  of  Mexico 
and  Peru  by  the  Spaniards,  who  in  those  countries  over- 
threw a  wonderful  civilization,  in  many  respects  superior 
to  their  own — a  civilization  that  had  been  accomplished 
without  iron  and  gunpowder — a  civilization  resting  on 
an  agriculture  that  had  neither  horse,  nor  ox,  nor  plough. 
The  Spaniards  had  a  clear  base  to  start  from,  and  no 
obstruction  whatever  in  their  advance.  They  ruined  all 
that  the  aboriginal  children  of  America  had  accom- 
plished. Millions  of  those  unfortunates  were  destroyed 
by  their  cruelty.  Nations  that  for  many  centuries  had 
been  living  in  contentment  and  prosperity,  under  in- 
stitutions shown  by  their  history  to  be  suitable  to  them, 
were  plunged  into  anarchy;  the  people  fell  into  a  bane- 
ful superstition,  and  a  greater  part  of  their  landed  and 
other  property  found  its  way  into  the  possession  of  the 
Roman  Church. 

I  have  selected  the  foregoing  illustration,  drawn 
from  American  history,  in  preference  to  many  others 
that  might  have  been  taken  from  European,  because 
it  furnishes  an  instance  of  the  operation  of  the  acting 
principle  least  interfered  with  by  extraneous  conditions. 
European  political  progress  is  less  simple  than  American. 


290  QUARREL  BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  THE  PAPACY. 

Before  considering  its  manner  of  action,  and  its  re- 
sults, I  will  briefly  relate  how  the  scientific  principle 
found  an  introduction  into  Europe. 

INTRODUCTION   OF   SCIENCE   INTO   EUROPE. 

Not  only  had  the  Crusades,  for  many  years,  brought 
vast  sums  to  Eome,  extorted  from  the  fears  or  the  piety 
of  every  Christian  nation;  they  had  also  increased  the 
papal  power  to  a  most  dangerous  extent.  In  the  dual 
governments  everywhere  prevailing  in  Europe,  the  spir- 
itual had  obtained  the  mastery;  the  temporal  was  little 
better  than  its  servant. 

From  all  quarters,  and  under  all  kinds  of  pretenses, 
streams  of  money  were  steadily  flowing  into  Italy.  The 
temporal  princes  found  that  there  were  left  for  them  in- 
adequate and  impoverished  revenues.  Philip  the  Fair, 
King  of  France  (A.  D.  1300),  not  only  determined  to 
check  this  drain  from  his  dominions,  by  prohibiting  the 
export  of  gold  and  silver  without  his  license;  he  also  re- 
solved that  the  clergy  and  the  ecclesiastical  estates 
should  pay  their  share  of  taxes  to  him.  This"  brought  on 
a  mortal  contest  with  the  papacy.  The  king  was  ex- 
communicated, and,  in  retaliation,  he  accused  the  pope, 
Boniface  VIII.,  of  atheism;  demanding  that  he  should 
be  tried  by  a  general  council.  He  sent  some  trusty  per- 
sons into  Italy,  who  seized  Boniface  in  his  palace  at 
Anagni,  and  treated  him  with  so  much  severity,  that  in 
a  few  days  he  died.  The  succeeding  pontiff,  Benedict 
XI.,  was  poisoned. 

The  French  king  was  determined  that  the  papacy 
should  be  purified  and  reformed;  that  it  should  no  longer 
be  the  appanage  of  a  few  Italian  families,  who  were 
dexterously  transmuting  the  credulity  of  Europe  into 
coin — that  French  influence  should  prevail  in  it.  He 


MOORISH  SCIENCE  INTRODUCED.  291 

therefore  came  to  an  understanding  with  the  cardinals; 
a  French  archbishop  was  elevated  to  the  pontificate; 
he  took  the  name  of  Clement  V.  The  papal  court  was 
removed  to  Avignon,  in  France,  and  Eome  was  aban- 
doned as  the  metropolis  of  Christianity. 

Seventy  years  elapsed  before  the  papacy  was  restored 
to  the  Eternal  City  (A.  D.  1376).  The  diminution  of  its 
influence  in  the  peninsula,  that  had  thus  occurred,  gave 
opportunity  for  the  memorable  intellectual  movement 
which  soon  manifested  itself  in  the  great  commercial 
cities  of  upper  Italy.  Contemporaneously,  also,  there 
were  other  propitious  events.  The  result  of  the  Cru- 
sades had  shaken  the  faith  of  all  Christendom.  In  an 
age  when  the  test  of  the  ordeal  of  battle  was  universally 
accepted,  those  wars  had  ended  in  leaving  the  Holy 
Land  in  the  hands  of  the  Saracens;  the  many  thousand 
Christian  warriors  who  had  returned  from  them  did  not 
hesitate  to  declare  that  they  had  found  their  antagonists 
not  such  as  had  been  pictured  by  the  Church,  but  val- 
iant, courteous,  just.  Through  the  gay  cities  of  the 
south  of  France  a  love  of  romantic  literature  had  been 
spreading;  the  wandering  troubadours  had  been  singing 
their  songs — songs  far  from  being  restricted  to  ladye- 
love  and  feats  of  war;  often  their  burden  was  the  awful 
atrocities  that  had  been  perpetrated  by  papal  authority 
— the  religious  massacres  of  Languedoc;  often  their  bur- 
den was  the  illicit  amours  of  the  clergy.  From  Moor- 
ish Spain  the  gentle  and  gallant  idea  of  chivalry  had 
been  brought,  and  with  it  the  noble  sentiment  of  "  per- 
sonal honor,"  destined  in  the  course  of  time  to  give  a 
code  of  its  own  to  Europe. 

The  return  of  the  papacy  to  Rome  was  far  from 
restoring  the  influence  of  the  popes  over  the  Italian 
Peninsula.  More  than  two  generations  had  passed  away 


292  EFFECT  OF  THE  GREAT  SCHISM. 

since  their  departure,  and,  had  they  come  back  even  in 
their  original  strength,  they  could  not  have  resisted  the 
intellectual  progress  that  had  been  made  during  their 
absence.  The  papacy,  however,  came  back  not  to  rule, 
but  to  be  divided  against  itself,  to  encounter  the  Great 
Schism.  Out  of  its  dissensions  emerged  two  rival  popes; 
eventually  there  were  three,  each  pressing  his  claims 
upon  the  religious,  each  cursing  his  rival.  A  sentiment 
of  indignation  soon  spread  all  over  Europe,  a  determi- 
nation that  the  shameful  scenes  which  were  then  enact- 
ing should  be  ended.  How  could  the  dogma  of  a 
Vicar  of  God  upon  earth,  the  dogma  of  an  infallible 
pope,  be  sustained  in  presence  of  such  scandals?  Herein 
lay  the  cause  of  that  resolution  of  the  ablest  ecclesiastics 
of  those  times  (which,  alas  for  Europe!  could  not  be  car- 
ried into  effect),  that  a  general  council  should  be  made 
the  permanent  religious  parliament  of  the  whole  con- 
tinent, with  the  pope  as  its  chief  executive  officer.  Had 
that  intention  been  accomplished,  there  would  have 
been  at  this  day  no  conflict  between  science  and  religion; 
the  convulsion  of  the  Reformation  would  have  been 
avoided;  there  would  have  been  no  jarring  Protestant 
sects.  But  the  Councils  of  Constance  and  Basle  failed 
to  shake  off  the  Italian  yoke,  failed  to  attain  that  noble 
result. 

Catholicism  was  thus  weakening;  as  its  leaden  press- 
ure lifted,  the  intellect  of  man  expanded.  The  Sara- 
cens had  invented  the  method  of  making  paper  from 
linen  rags  and  from  cotton.  The  Venetians  had  brought 
from  China  to  Europe  the  art  of  printing.  The  former 
of  these  inventions  was  essential  to  the  latter.  Hence- 
forth, without  the  possibility  of  a  check,  there  was  in- 
tellectual intercommunication  among  all  men. 

The  invention  of  printing  was  a  severe  blow  to 


INVENTION  OF  PRINTING.  293 

Catholicism,  which  had  previously  enjoyed  the  inap- 
preciable advantage  of  a  monopoly  of  intercommuni- 
cation. From  its  central  seat,  orders  could  be  dissemi- 
nated through  all  the  ecclesiastical  ranks,  and  ful- 
minated through  the  pulpits.  This  monopoly  and  the 
amazing  power  it  conferred  were  destroyed  by  the  press. 
In  modern  times,  the  influence  of  the  pulpit  has  become 
insignificant.  The  pulpit  has  been  thoroughly  sup- 
planted by  the  newspaper. 

Yet,  Catholicism  did  not  yield  its  ancient  advantage 
without  a  struggle.  As  soon  as  the  inevitable  tendency 
of  the  new  art  was  detected,  a  restraint  upon  it,  under 
the  form  of  a  censorship,  was  attempted.  It  was  made 
necessary  to  have  a  permit,  in  order  to  print  a  book. 
For  this,  it  was  needful  that  the  work  should  have  been 
read,  examined,  and  approved  by  the  clergy.  There 
must  be  a  certificate  that  it  was  a  godly  and  orthodox 
book.  A  bull  of  excommunication  was  issued  in  1501, 
by  Alexander  VI.,  against  printers  who  should  publish 
pernicious  doctrines.  In  1515  the  Lateran  Council 
ordered  that  no  books  should  be  printed  but  such  as 
had  been  inspected  by  the  ecclesiastical  censors,  under 
pain  of  excommunication  and  fine;  the  censors  being 
directed  "  to  take  the  utmost  care  that  nothing  should 
be  printed  contrary  to  the  orthodox  faith."  There  was 
thus  a  dread  of  religious  discussion;  a  terror  lest  truth 
should  emerge. 

But  these  frantic  struggles  of  the  powers  of  igno- 
rance were  unavailing.  Intellectual  intercommunica- 
tion among  men  was  secured.  It  culminated  in  the 
modern  newspaper,  which  daily  gives  its  contempora- 
neous intelligence  from  all  parts  of  the  world.  Heading 
became  a  common  occupation.  In  ancient  society  that 
art  was  possessed  by  comparatively  few  persons.  Mod- 
21 


294         EFFECTS  OF  MARITIME  ENTERPRISE. 

ern  society  owes  some  of  its  most  striking  characteristics 
to  this  change. 

Such  was  the  result  of  bringing  into  Europe  the 
manufacture  of  paper  and  the  printing-press.  In  like 
manner  the  introduction  of  the  mariner's  compass  was 
followed  by  imposing  material  and  moral  effects.  These 
were:  the  discovery  of  America  in  consequence  of  the 
rivalry  of  the  Venetians  and  Genoese  about  the  India 
trade;  the  doubling  of  Africa  by  De  Gama;  and  the 
circumnavigation  of  the  earth  by  Magellan.  With  re- 
spect to  the  last,  the  grandest  of  all  human  undertakings, 
it  is  to  be  remembered  that  Catholicism  had  irrevocably 
committed  itself  to  the  dogma  of  a  flat  earth,  with  the 
sky  as  the  floor  of  heaven,  and  hell  in  the  under-world. 
Some  of  the  Fathers,  whose  authority  was  held  to  be 
paramount,  had,  as  we  have  previously  said,  furnished 
philosophical  and  religious  arguments  against  the  globu- 
lar form.  The  controversy  had  now  suddenly  come  to 
an  end — the  Church  was  found  to  be  in  error. 

The  correction  of  that  geographical  error  was  by  no 
means  the  only  important  result  that  followed  the  three 
great  voyages.  The  spirit  of  Columbus,  De  Gama, 
Magellan,  diffused  itself  among  all  the  enterprising  men 
of  Western  Europe.  Society  had  been  hitherto  living 
under  the  dogma  of  "  loyalty  to  the  king,  obedience  to 
the  Church."  It  had  therefore  been  living  for  others, 
not  for  itself.  The  political  effect  of  that  dogma  had 
culminated  in  the  Crusades.  Countless  thousands  had 
perished  in  wars  that  could  bring  them  no  reward,  and 
of  which  the  result  had  been  conspicuous  failure.  V.\- 
perience  had  revealed  the  fact  that  the  only  gainers 
were  the  pontiffs,  cardinals,  and  other  ecclesiastics  in 
Rome,  and  the  shipmasters  of  Venice.  But,  when  it 
became  known  that  the  wealth  of  Mexico,  Peru,  and 


INDIVIDUALISM.  295 

India,  might  be  shared  by  any  one  who  had  enterprise 
and  courage,  the  motives  that  had  animated  the  restless 
populations  of  Europe  suddenly  changed.  The  story  of 
Cortez  and  Pizarro  found  enthusiastic  listeners  every- 
where. Maritime  adventure  supplanted  religious  en- 
thusiasm. 

If  we  attempt  to  isolate  the  principle  that  lay  at 
the  basis  of  the  wonderful  social  changes  that  now  took 
place,  we  may  recognize  it  without  difficulty.  Hereto- 
fore each  man  had  dedicated  his  services  to  his  supe- 
rior— feudal  or  ecclesiastical;  now  he  had  resolved  to 
gather  the  fruits  of  his  exertions  himself.  Individual- 
ism was  becoming  predominant,  loyalty  was  declining 
into  a  sentiment.  We  shall  now  see  how  it  was  with 
the  Church. 

Individualism  rests  on  the  principle  that  a  man  shall 
be  his  own  master,  that  he  shall  have  liberty  to  form 
his  own  opinions,  freedom  to  carry  into  effect  his  re- 
solves. He  is,  therefore,  ever  brought  into  competition 
with  his  fellow-men.  His  life  is  a  display  of  energy. 

To  remove  the  stagnation  of  centuries  from  Euro- 
pean life,  to  vivify  suddenly  what  had  hitherto  been  an 
inert  mass,  to  impart  to  it  individualism,  was  to  bring 
it  into  conflict  with  the  influences  that  had  been  oppress- 
ing it.  All  through  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  cen- 
turies uneasy  stragglings  gave  a  premonition  of  what 
was  coming.  In  the  early  part  of  the  sixteenth  (1517), 
the  battle  was  joined.  Individualism  found  its  embodi- 
ment in  a  sturdy  German  monk,  and  therefore,  perhaps 
necessarily,  asserted  its  rights  tinder  theological  forms. 
There  were  some  preliminary  skirmishes  about  indul- 
gences and  other  minor  matters,  bwt  very  soon  the  real 
cause  of  dispute  came  plainly  into  view.  Martin  Lu- 
ther refused  to  think  as  he  was  ordered  to  do  by  his  ec- 


296  THE  REFORMATION. 

clesiastical  superiors  at  Home;  he  asserted  that  he  had 
an  inalienable  right  to  interpret  the  Bible  for  himself. 

At  her  first  glance,  Rome  saw  nothing  in  Martin 
Luther  but  a  vulgar,  insubordinate,  quarrelsome  monk. 
Could  the  Inquisition  have  laid  hold  of  him,  it  would 
have  speedily  disposed  of  his  affair;  but,  as  the  conflict 
went  on,  it  was  discovered  that  Martin  was  not  standing 
alone.  Many  thousands  of  men,  as  resolute  as  himself, 
wore  coming  up  to  his  support;  and,  while  he  carried 
on  the  combat  with  writings  and  words,  they  made  good 
his  propositions  with  the  sword. 

The  vilification  which  was  poured  on  Luther  and 
his  doings  was  so  bitter  as  to  be  ludicrous.  It  was  de- 
clared that  his  father  was  not  his  mother's  husband,  but 
an  impish  incubus,  who  had  deluded  her;  that,  after  ten 
years'  struggling  with  his  conscience,  he  had  become  an 
atheist;  that  he  denied  the  immortality  of  the  soul; 
that  he  had  composed  hymns  in  honor  of  drunkenness, 
a  vice  to  which  he  was  unceasingly  addicted;  that  he 
blasphemed  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  particularly  Moses; 
that  he  did  not  believe  a  word  of  what  he  preached; 
that  he  had  called  the  Epistle  of  St.  James  a  thing  of 
straw;  and,  above  all,  that  the  Reformation  was  no 
work  of  his,  but,  in  reality,  was  due  to  a  certain  astro- 
logical position  of  the  stars.  It  was,  however,  a  vulgar 
saying  among  the  Roman  ecclesiastics  that  Erasmus  laid 
the  egg  of  the  Reformation,  and  Luther  hatched  it. 

Rome  at  first  made  the  mistake  of  supposing  that 
this  was  nothing  more  than  a  casual  outbreak;  she  failed 
to  discern  that  it  was,  in  fact,  the  culmination  of  an  inter- 
nal movement  which  for  two  centuries  had  been  going 
on  in  Europe,  and  which  had  been  hourly  gathering 
force;  that,  had  there  been  nothing  else,  the  existence  of 
three  popes — three  obediences — would  have  compelled 


DECOMPOSITION  OF  PROTESTANTISM.         297 

men  to  think,  to  deliberate,  to  conclude  for  themselves. 
The  Councils  of  Constance  and  Basle  taught  them  that 
there  was  a  higher  power  than  the  popes.  The  long  and 
bloody  wars  that  ensued  were  closed  by  the  Peace  of 
Westphalia;  and  then  it  was  found  that  Central  and 
Northern  Europe  had  cast  off  the  intellectual  tyranny 
of  Rome,  that  individualism  had  carried  its  point,  and 
had  established  the  right  of  every  man  to  think  for 
himself. 

But  it  was  impossible  that  the  establishment  of  this 
right  of  private  judgment  should  end  with  the  rejection 
of  Catholicism.  Early  in  the  movement  some  of  the 
most  distinguished  men,  such  as  Erasmus,  who  had  been 
among  its  first  promoters,  abandoned  it.  They  per- 
ceived that  many  of  the  Eeformers  entertained  a  bit- 
ter dislike  of  learning,  and  they  were  afraid  of  being 
brought  under  bigoted  caprice.  The  Protestant  party, 
having  thus  established  its  existence  by  dissent  and  sep- 
aration, must,  in  its  turn,  submit  to  the  operation  of  the 
same  principles.  A  decomposition  into  many  subordi- 
nate sects  was  inevitable.  And  these,  now  that  they 
had  no  longer  any  thing  to  fear  from  "their  great  Italian 
adversary,  commenced  partisan  warfares  on  each  other. 
As,  in  different  countries,  first  one  and  then  another 
sect  rose  to  power,  it  stained  itself  with  cruelties  perpe- 
trated upon  its  competitors.  The  mortal  retaliations 
that  had  ensued,  when,  in  the  chances  of  the  times,  the 
oppressed  got  the  better  of  their  oppressors,  convinced 
the  contending  sectarians  that  they  must  concede  to 
their  competitors  what  they  claimed  for  themselves;  and 
thus,  from  their  broils  and  their  crimes,  the  great  prin- 
ciple of  toleration  extricated  itself.  But  toleration  is 
only  an  intermediate  stage;  and,  as  the  intellectual  de- 
composition of  Protestantism  keeps  going  on,  that  tran- 


«J!K  TOLERATION. 

sitionnl  condition  will  load  to  a  higher  and  nobler  state 
— the  hope  of  philosophy  in  all  past  ages  of  the  world — 
a  social  state  in  which  there  shall  he  unfettered  freedom 
for  thought.  Toleration,  except  when  extorted  by  fear, 
can  only  come  from  those  who  are  capable  of  entertain- 
ing and  respecting  other  opinions  than  their  own.  It 
can  therefore  only  come  from  philosophy.  History 
teaches  us  only  too  plainly  that  fanaticism  is  stimulated 
by  religion,  and  neutralized  or  eradicated  by  philoso- 
phy- 

The  avowed  object  of  the  Reformation  was,  to  re- 
move from  Christianity  the  pagan  ideas  and  pagan  rites 
engrafted  upon  it  by  Constantine  and  his  successors, 
in  their  attempt  to  reconcile  the  Roman  Empire  to  it. 
The  Protestants  designed  to  bring  it  back  to  its  primi- 
tive purity;  and  hence,  while  restoring  the  ancient  doc- 
trines, they  cast  out  of  it  all  such  practices  as  the  ado- 
ration of  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  invocation  of  saints. 
The  Virgin  Mary,  we  are  assured  by  the  Evangelists, 
had  accepted  the  duties  of  married  life,  and  borne  to 
her  husband  several  children.  In  the  prevailing  idola- 
try, she  had  ceased  to  be  regarded  as  the  carpenter's 
wife;  she  had  become  the  queen  of  heaven,  and  the 
mother  of  God. 

The  science  of  the  Arabians  followed  the  invading 
track  of  their  literature,  which  had  come  into  Christen- 
dom by  two  routes — the  south  of  France,  and  Sicily. 
Favored  by  the  exile  of  the  popes  to  Avignon,  and  by 
the  Great  Schism,  it  made  good  its  foothold  in  Upper 
Italy.  The  Aristotelian  or  Inductive  philosophy,  clad 
in  the  Saracenic  costume  that  Averroes  had  given  it, 
made  many  secret  and  not  a  few  open  friends.  It  found 
many  minds  eager  to  recive  and  able  to  appreciate  it. 
Among  these  were  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  who  proclaimed 


DA  VINCI.  299 

the  fundamental  principle  that  experiment  and  observa- 
tion are  the  only  reliable  foundations  of  reasoning  in  sci- 
ence, that  experiment  is  the  only  trustworthy  interpreter 
of  Nature,  and  is  essential  to  the  ascertainment  of  laws. 
He  showed  that  the  action  of  two  perpendicular  forces 
upon  a  point  is  the  same  as  that  denoted  by  the  diagonal 
of  a  rectangle,  of  which  they  represent  the  sides.  From 
this  the  passage  to  the  proposition  of  oblique  forces  was 
very  easy.  This  proposition  was  rediscovered  by  Ste- 
vinus  a  century  later,  .and  applied  by  him  to  the  ex- 
planation of  the  mechanical  powers.  Da  Vinci  gave  a 
clear  exposition  of  the  theory  of  forces  applied  obliquely 
on  a  lever,  discovered  the  laws  of  friction  subsequently 
demonstrated  by  Amontons,  and  understood  the  prin- 
ciple of  virtual  velocities.  He  treated  of  the  conditions 
of  descent  of  bodies  along  inclined  planes  and  circular 
arcs,  invented  the  camera-obscura,  discussed  correctly 
several  physiological  problems,  and  foreshadowed  some 
of  the  great  conclusions  of  modern  geology,  such  as  the 
nature  of  fossil  remains,  and  the  elevation  of  continents. 
He  explained  the  earth-light  reflected  by  the  moon. 
With  surprising  versatility  of  genius  he  excelled  as  a 
sculptor,  architect,  engineer;  was  thoroughly  versed  in 
the  astronomy,  anatomy,  and  chemistry  of  his  times. 
In  painting,  he  was  the  rival  of  Michel  Angelo;  in  a 
competition  between  them,  he  was  considered  to  have 
established  his  superiority.  His  "  Last  Supper,"  on  the 
wall  of  the  refectory  of  the  Dominican  convent  of  Sta. 
Maria  delle  Grazie,  is  well  known,  from  the  numerous 
engravings  and  copies  that  have  been  made  of  it. 

Once  firmly  established  in  the  north  of  Italy,  Sci- 
ence soon  extended  her  sway  over  the  entire  penin- 
sula. The  increasing  number  of  her  devotees  is  indi- 
cated by  the  rise  and  rapid  multiplication  of  learned 


300  ITALIAN  SCIENTIFIC  SOCIETIES. 

societies.  These  were  reproductions  of  the  Moorish 
ones  that  had  formerly  existed  in  Granada  and  Cordova. 
As  if  to  mark  by  a  monument  the  track  through  which 
civilizing  influences  had  come,  the  Academy  of  Tou- 
louse, founded  in  1345,  has  survived  to  our  own  times. 
It  represented,  however,  the  gay  literature  of  the  south 
of  France,  and  was  known  under  the  fanciful  title  of 
"  the  Academy  of  Floral  Games."  The  first  society  for 
the  promotion  of  physical  science,  the  Academia  Se- 
cretorum  Naturae,  was  founded  at  Naples,  by  Baptista 
Porta.  It  was,  as  Tiraboschi  relates,  dissolved  by  the 
ecclesiastical  authorities.  The  Lyncean  was  founded  by 
Prince  Frederic  Cesi  at  Home;  its  device  plainly  indi- 
cated its  intention :  a  lynx,  with  its  eyes  turned  upward 
toward  heaven,  tearing  a  triple-headed  Cerberus  with 
its  claws.  The  Accademia  del  Cimento,  established  at 
Florence,  1657,  held  its  meetings  in  the  ducal  palace. 
It  lasted  ten  years,  and  was  then  suppressed  at  the  in- 
stance of  the  papal  government;  as  an  equivalent,  the 
brother  of  the  grand-duke  was  made  a  cardinal.  It 
numbered  many  great  men,  such  as  Torricelli  and  Cas- 
telli,  among  its  members.  The  condition  of  admission 
into  it  was  an  abjuration  of  all  faith,  and  a  resolution  to 
inquire  into  the  truth.  These  societies  extricated  the 
cultivators  of  science  from  the  isolation  in  which  they 
had  hitherto  lived,  and,  by  promoting  their  intercom- 
munication and  union,  imparted  activity  and  strength  to 
them  all. 

INTELLECTUAL    INFLUENCE    OF    SCIENCE. 

Returning  now  from  this  digression,  this  historical 
sketch  of  the  circumstances  under  which  science  was  in- 
troduced into  Europe,  I  pass  to  the  consideration  of 
its  manner  of  action  and  its  results. 


INTELLECTUAL  INFLUENCE   OF  SCIENCE.      30 1 

The  influence  of  science  on  modern  civilization  has 
been  twofold:  1.  Intellectual;  2.  Economical.  Under 
these  titles  we  may  conveniently  consider  it. 

Intellectually  it  overthrew  the  authority  of  tradi- 
tion. It  refused  to  accept,  unless  accompanied  by  proof, 
the  dicta  of-  any  master,  no  matter  how  eminent  or 
honored  his  name.  The  conditions  of  admission  into 
the  Italian  Accademia  del  Cimento,  and  the  motto 
adopted  by  the  Koyal  Society  of  London,  illustrate  the 
position  it  took  in  this  respect. 

It  rejected  the  supernatural  and  miraculous  as  evi- 
dence in  physical  discussions.  It  abandoned  sign-proof 
such  as  the  Jews  in  old  days  required,  and  denied  that 
a  demonstration  can  be  given  through  an  illustration 
of  something  else,  thus  casting  aside  the  logic  that  had 
been  in  vogue  for  many  centuries. 

In  physical  inquiries,  its  mode  of  procedure  was,  to 
test  the  value  of  any  proposed  hypothesis,  by  executing 
computations  in  any  special  case  on  the  basis  or  prin- 
ciple of  that  hypothesis,  and  then,  by  performing  an  ex- 
periment or  making  an  observation,  to  ascertain  whether 
the  result  of  these  agreed  with  the  result  of  the  com- 
putation. If  it  did  not,  the  hypothesis  was  to  be  re- 
jected. 

We  may  here  introduce  an  illustration  or  two  of 
this  mode  of  procedure: 

Newton,  suspecting  that  the  influence  of  the  earth's 
attraction,  gravity,  may  extend  as  far  as  the  moon,  and 
be  the  force  that  causes  her  to  revolve  in  her  orbit 
round  the  earth,  calculated  that,  by  her  motion  in  her 
orbit,  she  was  deflected  from  the  tangent  thirteen  feet 
every  minute;  but,  by  ascertaining  the  space  through 
which  bodies  would  fall  in  one  minute  at  the  earth's 
surface,  and  supposing  it  to  be  diminished  in  the  ratio 


302  THEORIES  OF  G11AV1TATK  ».\  AND  PHLOGISTON. 

of  the  inverse  square,  it  appeared  that  the  attraction  <>f 
the  moon's  orbit  would  draw  a  body  through  more  than 
lift  cm  i'crt.  He,  therefore,  for  the  time,  considered 
his  hypothesis  as  unsustained.  But  it  so  happened  that 
Picard  shortly  afterward  executed  more  correctly  a  new 
measurement  of  a  degree;  this  changed  the  estimated 
magnitude  of  the  earth,  and  the  distance  of  the  moon, 
which  was  measured  in  earth-semidiameters.  Newton 
now  renewed  his  computation,  and,  as  I  have  related  on 
a  previous  page,  as  it  drew  to  a  close,  foreseeing  that  a 
coincidence  was  about  to  be  established,  was  H>  much 
agitated  that  he  was  obliged  to  ask  a  friend  to  complete 
it.  The  hypothesis  was  sustained. 

A  second  instance  will  suiliciently  illustrate  the 
method  under  consideration.  It  is  presented  by  the 
( -licmical  theory  of  phlogiston.  Stahl,  the  author  of 
this  theory,  asserted  that  there  is  a  principle  of  inflam- 
mability, to  which  he  gave  the  name  phlogiston,  having 
the  quality  of  uniting  with  substances.  Thus,  when 
what  we  now  term  a  metallic  oxide  was  united  to  it, 
a  metal  was  produced;  and,  if  the  phlogiston  were 
withdrawn,  the  metal  passed  back  into  its  earthy  or  oxi- 
dized state.  On  this  principle,  then,  the  metals  were 
compound  bodies,  earths  combined  with  phlogiston. 

But  during  the  eighteenth  century  the  balance  was 
introduced  as  an  instrument  of  chemical  research.  Now, 
if  the  phlogistic  hypothesis  be  true,  it  would  follow  that 
a  metal  should  be  the  heavier,  its  oxide  the  lighter  body, 
for  the  former  contains  something — phlogiston — that 
has  been  added  to  the  latter.  But,  on  weighing  a  por- 
tion of  any  metal,  and  also  the  oxide  producible  from 
it,  the  latter  proves  to  be  the  heavier,  and  here  the  phlo- 
gistic hypothesis  fails.  Still  further,  on  continuing  the 
investigation,  it  may  be  shown  that  the  oxide  or  calx,  as 


SCIENCE  AND  ECCLESIASTICISM.  303 

it  used  to  be  called,  has  become  heavier  by  combining 
with  one  of  the  ingredients  of  the  air. 

To  Lavoisier  is  usually  attributed  this  test  experi- 
ment; but  the  fact  that  the  weight  of  a  metal  increases 
by  calcination  was  established  by  earlier  European  ex- 
perimenters, and,  indeed,  was  well  known  to  the  Ara- 
bian chemists.  Lavoisier,  however,  was  the  first  to  rec- 
ognize its  great  importance.  In  his  hands  it  produced  a 
revolution  in  chemistry. 

The  abandonment  of  the  phlogistic  theory  is  an  il- 
lustration of  the  readiness  with  which  scientific  hypoth- 
eses are  surrendered,  when  found  to  be  wanting  in  ac- 
cordance with  facts.  Authority  and  tradition  pass  for 
nothing.  Every  thing  is  settled  by  an  appeal  to  Nature. 
It  is  assumed  that  the  answers  she  gives  to  a  practical 
interrogation  will  ever  be  true. 

Comparing  now  the  philosophical  principles  on 
which  science  was  proceeding,  with  the  principles  on 
which  ecclesiasticism  rested,  wfe  see  that,  while  the  for- 
mer repudiated  tradition,  to  the  latter  it  was  the  main 
support;  while  the  former  insisted  on  the  agreement  of 
calculation  and  observation,  or  the  correspondence  of 
reasoning  and  fact,  the  latter  leaned  upon  mysteries; 
while  the  former  summarily  rejected  its  own  theories, 
if  it  saw  that  they  could  not  be  coordinated  with  Nature, 
the  latter  found  merit  in  a  faith  that  blindly  accepted 
the  inexplicable,  a  satisfied  contemplation  of  "  things 
above  reason."  The  alienation  between  the  two  contin- 
ually increased.  On  one  side  there  was  a  sentiment  of 
disdain,  on  the  other  a  sentiment  of  hatred.  Impartial 
witnesses  on  all  hands  perceived  that  science  was  rapid- 
ly undermining  ecclesiasticism. 

Mathematics  had  thus  become  the  great  instrument 


304  MATHEMATICS. 

of  scientific  research,  it  had  become  the  instrument 
of  scientific  reasoning.  In  one  respect  it  may  be  said 
that  it  reduced  the  operations  of  the  mind  to  a  mechani- 
cal process,  for  its  symbols  often  saved  the  labor  of 
thinking.  The  habit  of  mental  exactness  it  encouraged 
extended  to  other  branches  of  thought,  and  produced 
an  intellectual  revolution.  No  longer  was  it  possible 
to  be  satisfied  with  miracle-proof,  or  the  logic  that  had 
been  relied  upon  throughout  the  middle  ages.  Not 
only  did  it  thus  influence  the  manner  of  thinking, 
it  also  changed  the  direction  of  thought.  Of  this  we 
may  be  satisfied  by  comparing  the  subjects  considered 
in  the  transactions  of  the  various  learned  societies  with 
the  discussions  that  had  occupied  the  attention  of  the 
middle  ages. 

But  the  use  of  mathematics  was  not  limited  to  the 
verification  of  theories;  as  above  indicated,  it  also  fur- 
nished a  means  of  predicting  what  had  hitherto  been 
unobserved.  In  this  it  offered  a  counterpart  to  the 
prophecies  of  ecclesiasticism.  The  discovery  of  Nep- 
tune is  an  instance  of  the  kind  furnished  by  astronomy, 
and  that  of  conical  refraction  by  the  optical  theory  of 
undulations. 

But,  while  this  great  instrument  led  to  such  a  won- 
derful development  in  natural  science,  it  was  itself  un- 
dergoing development — improvement.  Let  us  in  a  few 
lines  recall  its  progress. 

The  germ  of  algebra  may  be  discerned  in  the  works 
of  Diophantus  of  Alexandria,  who  is  supposed  to  have 
lived  in  the  second  century  of  our  era.  In  that  Egyp- 
tian school  Euclid  had  formerly  collected  the  great 
truths  of  geometry,  and  arranged  them  in  logical  se- 
quence. Archimedes,  in  Syracuse,  had  attempted  the 
solution  of  the  higher  problems  by  the  method  of  ex- 


MATHEMATICS.  305 

haustions.  Such  was  the  tendency  of  things  that,  had 
the  patronage  of  science  been  continued,  algebra  would 
inevitably  have  been  invented. 

To  the  Arabians  we  owe  our  knowledge  of  the 
rudiments  of  algebra;  we  owe  to  them  the  very  name 
under  which  this  branch  of  mathematics  passes.  They 
had  carefully  added,  to  the  remains  of  the  Alex- 
andrian School,  improvements  obtained  in  India,  and 
had  communicated  to  the  subject  a  certain  consistency 
and  form.  The  knowledge  of  algebra,  as  they  pos- 
sessed it,  was  first  brought  into  Italy  about  the  begin- 
ning of  the  thirteenth  century.  It  attracted  so  lit- 
tle attention,  that  nearly  three  hundred  years  elapsed 
before  any  European  work  on  the  subject  appeared.  In 
1496  Paccioli  published  his  book  entitled  "  Arfce  Mag- 
giore,"  or  "  Alghebra."  In  1501,  Cardan,  of  Milan,  gave 
a  method  for  the  solution  of  cubic  equations;  other  im- 
provements were  contributed  by  Scipio  Ferreo,  1508,  by 
Tartalea,  by  Vieta.  The  Germans  now  took  up  the 
subject.  At  this  time  the  notation  was  in  an  imperfect 
state. 

The  publication  of  the  Geometry  of  Descartes,  which 
contains  the  application  of  algebra  to  the  definition  and 
investigation  of  curve  lines  (1637),  constitutes  an  epoch 
in  the  history  of  the  mathematical  sciences.  Two  years 
previously,  Cavalieri's  work  on  Indivisibles  had  ap- 
peared. This  method  was  improved  by  Torricelli  and 
others.  The  way  was  now  open  for  the  development 
of  the  Infinitesimal  Calculus,  the  method  of  Fluxions  of 
Newton,  and  the  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus  of 
Leibnitz.  Though  in  his  possession  many  years  previ- 
ously, Newton  published  nothing  on  Fluxions  until 
1704;  the  imperfect  notation  he  employed  retarded 
very  much  the  application  of  his  method.  Meantime, 


306  MATHEMATICS. 

on  the  Continent,  very  largely  through  the  brilliant  so- 
lutions of  some  of  the  higher  problems,  accompanied  by 
the  Bernouillis,  the  Calculus  of  Leibnitz  was  univer- 
sally accepted,  and  improved  by  many  mathematicians. 
An  extraordinary  development  of  the  science  now  took 
place,  and  continued  throughout  the  century.  To  the 
Binomial  theorem,  previously  discovered  by  Newton, 
Taylor  now  added,  in  his  "  Method  of  Increments,"  the 
celebrated  theorem  that  bears  his  name.  This  was  in 
1715.  The  Calculus  of  Partial  Differences  was  intro- 
duced by  Euler  in  1734.  It  was  extended  by  D'Alem- 
bcrt,  and  was  followed  by  that  of  Variations,  by  Euler 
and  Lagrange,  and  by  the  method  of  Derivative  Func- 
tions, by  Lagrange,  in  1772. 

But  it  was  not  only  in  Italy,  in  Germany,  in  Eng- 
land, in  France,  that  this  great  movement  in  mathemat- 
ics was  witnessed ;  Scotland  had  added  a  new  gem  to  the 
inU'llcctual  diadem  with  which  her  brow  is  encircled, 
by  the  grand  invention  of  Logarithms,  by  Napier  of 
Merohiston.  It  is  impossible  to  give  any  adequate  con- 
ception of  the  scientific  importance  of  this  incomparable 
invention.  The  modern  physicist  and  astronomer  will 
most  cordially  agree  with  Briggs,the  Professorof  Mathe- 
matics in  (ircsham  College,  in  his  exclamation:  "  I 
never  saw  a  book  that  pleased  me  better,  and  that  made 
me  more  wonder!  "  Not  without  reason  did  the  im- 
mortal Kepler  regard  Napier  "  to  be  the  greatest  man 
of  liis  age,  in  the  department  to  which  he  had  applied 
his  abilities."  Napier  died  in  1617.  It  is  no  exag- 
geration to  say  that  this  invention,  by  shortening  the 
labors,  doubled  the  life  of  the  astronomer. 

But  here  I  must  check  myself.  I  must  remember 
that  my  present  purpose  is  not  to  give  the  history  of 
mathematics,  "but  to  consider  what  science  has  done  for 


MATHEMATICS.  307 

the  advancement  of  human  civilization.  And  now,  at 
once,  recurs  the  question,  How  is  it  that  the  Church 
produced  no  geometer  in  her  autocratic  reign  of  twelve 
hundred  years? 

With  respect  to  pure  mathematics  this  remark  may 
be  made:  Its  cultivation  does  not  demand  appliances 
that  are  beyond  the  reach  of  most  individuals.  Astron- 
omy must  have  its  observatory,  chemistry  its  labora- 
tory; but  mathematics  asks  only  personal  disposition 
and  a  few  books.  No  great  expenditures  are  called  for, 
nor  the  services  of  assistants.  One  would  think  that 
nothing  could  be  more  congenial,  nothing  more  delight- 
ful, even  in  the  retirement  of  monastic  life. 

Shall  we  answer  with  Eusebius,  "  It  is  through  con- 
tempt of  such  useless  labor  that  we  think  so  little  of 
these  matters;  we  turn  our  souls  to  the  exercise  of  bet- 
ter things  "  ?  Better  things!  What  can  be  better  than 
absolute  truth?  Are  mysteries,  miracles,  lying  impos- 
tures, better?  It  was  these  that  stood  in  the  way! 

The  ecclesiastical  authorities  had  recognized,  from 
the  outset  of  this  scientific  invasion,  that  the  principles 
it  was  disseminating  were  absolutely  irreconcilable  with 
the  current  theology.  Directly  and  indirectly,  they 
struggled  against  it.  So  great  was  their  detestation  of 
experimental  science,  that  they  thought  they  had  gained 
a  great  advantage  when  the  Accademia  del  Cimento  was 
suppressed.  Nor  was  the  sentiment  restricted  to  Cathol- 
icism. When  the  Royal  Society  of  London  was  found- 
ed, theological  odium  was  directed  against  it  with  so 
much  rancor  that,  doubtless,  it  would  have  been  extin- 
guished, had  not  King  Charles  II.  given  it  his  open  and 
avowed  support.  It  was  accused  of  an  intension  of  "  de- 
stroying the  established  religion,  of  injuring  the  univer- 
sities, and  of  upsetting  ancient  and  solid  learning." 


THE  ROYAL  SOCIETY  OP  LONDON. 

We  have  only  to  turn  over  the  pages  of  its  Transac- 
tions to  discern  how  much  this  society  has  done  for  the 
progress  of  humanity.  It  was  incorporated  in  1662, 
and  has  interested  itself  in  all  the  great  scientific  move- 
ments and  discoveries  that  have  since  been  made.  It 
published  Newton's  "  Principia; "  it  promoted  Halley's 
voyage,  the  first  scientific  expedition  undertaken  by  any 
government;  it  made  experiments  on  the  transfusion 
of  blood,  and  accepted  Harvey's  discovery  of  the  circu- 
lation. The  encouragement  it  gave  to  inoculation  led 
Queen  Caroline  to  beg  six  condemned  criminals  for  ex- 
periment, and  then  to  submit  her  own  children  to  that 
operation.  Through  its  encouragement  Bradley  accom- 
plished his  great  discovery,  the  aberration  of  the  fixed 
stars,  and  that  of  the  nutation  of  the  earth's  axis;  to 
these  two  discoveries,  Delambre  says,  we  owe  the  exact- 
ness of  modern  astronomy.  It  promoted  the  improve- 
ment of  the  thermometer,  the  measure  of  temperature, 
and  in  Harrison's  watch,  the  chronometer,  the  measure 
of  time.  Through  it  the  Gregorian  Calendar  was  intro- 
duced into  England,  in  1752,  against  a  violent  religious 
opposition.  Some  of  its  Fellows  were  pursued  through 
the  streets  by  an  ignorant  and  infuriated  mob,  who  be- 
lieved it  had  robbed  them  of  eleven  days  of  their  lives; 
it  was  found  necessary  to  conceal  the  name  of  Father 
AValmesley,  a  learned  Jesuit,  who  had  taken  deep  inter- 
est in  the  matter;  and,  Bradley  happening  to  die  during 
the  commotion,  it  was  declared  that  he  had  suffered  a 
judgment  from  Heaven  for  his  crime! 

If  I  were  to  attempt  to  do  justice  to  the  merits  of 
this  great  society,  I  should  have  to  devote  many  pages 
to  such  subjects  as  the  achromatic  telescope  of  Dollond; 
the  dividing  engine  of  Ramsden,  which  first  gave  pre- 
cision to  astronomical  observations;  the  measurement 


THE  ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  LONDON.  309 

of  a  degree  on  the  earth's  surface  by  Mason  and  Dixon; 
the  expeditions  of  Cook  in  connection  with  the  transit 
of  Venus;  his  circumnavigation  of  the  earth;  his  proof 
that  scurvy,  the  curse  of  long  sea-voyages,  may  be 
avoided  by  the  use  of  vegetable  substances;  the  polar 
expeditions;  the  determination  of  the  density  of  the 
earth  by  Maskelyne's  experiments  at  Schiehallion,  and 
by  those  of  Cavendish;  the  discovery  of  the  planet 
Uranus  by  Herschel;  the  composition  of  water  by  Cav- 
endish and  Watt;  the  determination  of  the  difference  of 
longitude  between  London  and  Paris;  the  invention  of 
the  voltaic  pile;  the  surveys  of  the  heavens  by  the 
Herschels;  the  development  of  the  principle  of  inter- 
ference by  Young,  and  his  establishment  of  the  undula- 
tory  theory  of  light;  the  ventilation  of  jails  and  other 
buildings;  the  introduction  of  gas  for  city  illumination; 
the  ascertainment  of  the  length  of  the  seconds-pendu- 
lum; the  measurement  of  the  variations  of  gravity  in 
different  latitudes;  the  operations  to  ascertain  the  cur- 
vature of  the  earth;  the  polar  expedition  of  Eoss;  the 
invention  of  the  safety-lamp  by  Davy,  and  his  decom- 
position of  the  alkalies  and  earths;  the  electro-magnetic 
discoveries  of  Oersted  and  Faraday;  the  calculating- 
engines  of  Babbage;  the  measures  taken  at  the  instance 
of  Humboldt  for  the  establishment  of  many  magnetic 
observatories;  the  verification  of  contemporaneous  mag- 
netic disturbances  over  the  earth's  surface.  But  it  is 
impossible,  in  the  limited  space  at  my  disposal,  to  give 
even  so  little  as  a  catalogue  of  its  Transactions.  Its 
spirit  was  identical  with  that  which  animated  the  Ac- 
cademia  del  Cimento,  and  its  motto  accordingly  was, 
"Nulling  in  Verba."  It  proscribed  superstition,  and 
permitted  only  calculation,  observation,  and  experi- 
ment. 

22 


310  INFLUENCE  OF  SCIENCE. 

Not  for  a  moment  must  it  be  supposed  that  in  these 
great  attempts,  these  great  successes,  the  Royal  Society 
stood  alone.  In  all  the  capitals  of  Europe  there  were 
Academies,  Institutes,  or  Societies,  equal  in  distinction, 
and  equally  successful  in  promoting  human  knowledge 
and  modern  civilization. 

THE   ECONOMICAL   INFLUENCES   OF   SCIENCE. 

The  scientific  study  of  Nature  tends  not  only  to  cor- 
rect and  ennoble  the  intellectual  conceptions  of  man; 
it  serves  also  to  ameliorate  his  physical  condition.  It 
perpetually  suggests  to  him  the  inquiry,  how  he  may 
make,  by  their  economical  application,  ascertained  facts 
subservient  to  his  use. 

The  investigation  of  principles  is  quickly  followed 
by  practical  inventions.  This,  indeed,  is  the  character- 
istic feature  of  our  times.  It  has  produced  a  great  revo- 
lution in  national  policy. 

In  former  ages  wars  were  made  for  the  procuring 
of  slaves.  A  conqueror  transported  entire  populations, 
and  extorted  from  them  forced  labor,  for  it  was  only  by 
human  labor  that  human  labor  could  be  relieved.  But 
when  it  was  discovered  that  physical  agents  and  mechan- 
ical combinations  could  be  employed  to  incomparably 
greater  advantage,  public  policy  underwent  a  change; 
when  it  was  recognized  that  the  application  of  a  new 
principle,  or  the  invention  of  a  new  machine,  was  better 
than  the  acquisition  of  an  additional  slave,  peace  be- 
came preferable  to  war.  And  not  only  so,  but  nations 
possessing  great  slave  or  serf  populations,  as  was  the 
case  in  America  and  Russia,  found  that  considerations 
of  humanity  were  supported  by  considerations  of  inter- 
est, and  set  their  bondmen  free. 

Thus  we  live  in  a  period  of  which  a  characteristic  is 


SCIENTIFIC  INVENTIONS.  31 1 

the  supplanting  of  human  and  animal  labor  by  machines. 
Its  mechanical  inventions  have  wrought  a  social  revo- 
lution. We  appeal  to  the  natural,  not  to  the  super- 
natural, for  the  accomplishment  of  our  ends.  It  is  with 
the  "  modern  civilization  "  thus  arising  that  Catholicism 
refuses  to  be  reconciled.  The  papacy  loudly  proclaims 
its  inflexible  repudiation  of  this  state  of  affairs,  and 
insists  on  a  restoration  of  the  medieval  condition  of 
things. 

That  a  piece  of  amber,  when  rubbed,  will  attract 
and  then  repel  light  bodies,  was  a  fact  known  six  hun- 
dred years  before  Christ.  It  remained  an  isolated,  un- 
cultivated fact,  a  mere  trifle,  until  sixteen  hundred  years 
after  Christ.  Then  dealt  with  by  the  scientific  methods 
of  mathematical  discussion  and  experiment,  and  practi- 
cal application  made  of  the  result,  it  has  permitted  men 
to  communicate  instantaneously  with  each  other  across 
continents  and  under  oceans.  It  has  centralized  the 
world.  By  enabling  the  sovereign  authority  to  trans- 
mit its  mandates  without  regard  to  distance  or  to  time, 
it  has  revolutionized  statesmanship  and  condensed  po- 
litical power. 

In  the  Museum  of  Alexandria  there  was  a  machine 
invented  by  Hero,  the  mathematician,  a  little  more  than 
one  hundred  years  before  Christ.  It  revolved  by  the 
agency  of  steam,  and  was  of  the  form  that  we  should 
now  call  a  reaction-engine.  This,  the  germ  of  one  of 
the  most  important  inventions  ever  made,  was  remem- 
bered as  a  mere  curiosity  for  seventeen  hundred  years. 

Chance  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  invention  of  the 
modern  steam-engine.  It  was  the  product  of  medi- 
tation and  experiment.  In  the  middle  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  several  mechanical  engineers  attempted 
to  utilize  the  properties  of  steam;  their  labors  were 


312  SCIENTIFIC  INVENTIONS. 

brought  to  perfection  by  Watt  in  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth. 

The  steam-engine  quickly  became  the  drudge  of 
civilization.  It  performed  the  work  of  many  millions 
of  men.  It  gave,  to  those  who  would  have  been  con- 
demned to  a  life  of  brutal  toil,  the  opportunity  of  better 
pursuits.  He  who  formerly  labored  might  now  think. 

Its  earliest  application  was  in  such  operations  as 
pumping,  wherein  mere  force  is  required.  Soon,  how- 
ever, it  vindicated  its  delicacy  of  touch  in  the  industrial 
arts  of  spinning  and  weaving.  It  created  vast  manu- 
facturing establishments,  and  supplied  clothing  for  the 
world.  It  changed  the  industry  of  nations. 

In  its  application,  first  to  the  navigation  of  rivers, 
and  then  to  the  navigation  of  the  ocean,  it  more  than 
quadrupled  the  speed  that  had  heretofore  been  attained. 
Instead  of  forty  days  being  requisite  for  the  passage, 
the  Atlantic  might  now  be  crossed  in  eight.  But,  in 
land  transportation,  its  power  was  most  strikingly  dis- 
played. The  admirable  invention  of  the  locomotive 
enabled  men  to  travel  farther  in  less  than  an  hour  than 
they  formerly  could  have  done  in  more  than  a  day. 

The  locomotive  has  not  only  enlarged  the  field  of 
human  activity,  but,  by  diminishing  space,  it  has  in- 
creased the  capabilities  of  human  life.  In  the  swift 
transportation  of  manufactured  goods  and  agricultural 
products,  it  has  become  a  most  efficient  incentive  to 
human  industry. 

The  perfection  of  ocean  steam-navigation  was 
greatly  promoted  by  the  invention  of  the  chronometer, 
which  rendered  it  possible  to  find  with  accuracy  the 
place  of  a  ship  at  sea.  The  great  drawback  on  the  ad- 
vancement of  science  in  the  Alexandrian  School  was 
the  want  of  an  instrument  for  the  measurement  of 


SCIENTIFIC  INVENTIONS.  313 

time,  and  one  for  the  measurement  of  temperature — 
the  chronometer  and  the  thermometer;  indeed,  the  in- 
vention of  the  latter  is  essential  to  that  of  the  former. 
Clepsydras,  or  water-clocks,  had  been  tried,  but  they 
were  deficient  in  accuracy.  Of  one  of  them,  ornament- 
ed with  the  signs  of  the  zodiac,  and  destroyed  by  cer- 
tain primitive  Christians,  St.  Polycarp  significantly  re- 
marked, "  In  all  these  monstrous  demons  is  seen  an  art 
hostile  to  God."  Not  until  about  1680  did  the  chro- 
nometer begin  to  approach  accuracy.  Hooke,  the  con- 
temporary of  Newton,  gave  it  the  balance-wheel,  with 
the  spiral  spring,  and  various  escapements  in  succession 
were  devised,  such  as  the  anchor,  the  dead-beat,  the 
duplex,  the  remontoir.  Provisions  for  the  variation  of 
temperature  were  introduced.  It  was  brought  to  perfec- 
tion eventually  by  Harrison  and  Arnold,  in  their  hands 
becoming  an  accurate  measure  of  the  flight  of  time. 
To  the  invention  of  the  chronometer  must  be  added 
that  of  the  reflecting  sextant  by  Godfrey.  This  per- 
mitted astronomical  observations  to  be  made,  notwith- 
standing the  motion  of  a  ship. 

Improvements  in  ocean  navigation  are  exercising 
a  powerful  influence  on  the  distribution  of  mankind. 
They  are  increasing  the  amount  and  altering  the  char- 
acter of  colonization. 

But  not  alone  have  these  great  discoveries  and  in- 
ventions, the  off  spring  of  scientific  investigation,  changed 
the  lot  of  the  human  race;  very  many  minor  ones,  per- 
haps individually  insignificant,  have  in  their  aggregate 
accomplished  surprising  effects.  The  commencing  cul- 
tivation of  science  in  the  fourteenth  century  gave  a 
wonderful  stimulus  to  inventive  talent,  directed  mainly 
to  useful  practical  results;  and  this,  subsequently,  was 
greatly  encouraged  by  the  system  of  patents,  which 


314  DOMESTIC  IMPROVEMENT. 

secure  to  the  originator  a  reasonable  portion  of  the  ben- 
efits of  his  skill.  It  is  suiliciciit  to  refer  in  the  most 
cursory  manner  to  a  few  of  these  improvements;  \\i- 
appreciate  at  once  how  much  they  have  done.  The 
introduction  of  the  saw-mill  gave  wooden  floors  to 
houses,  banishing  those  of  gypsum,  tile,  or  stone;  im- 
provements cheapening  the  manufacture  of  glass  gave 
windows,  making  possible  the  warming  of  apartments. 
However,  it  was  not  until  the  sixteenth  century  that 
glazing  could  be  well  done.  The  cutting  of  glass  by  the 
diamond  was  then  introduced.  The  addition  of  chim- 
neys purified  the  atmosphere  of  dwellings,  smoky  and 
sooty  as  the  huts  of  savages;  it  gave  that  indescribable 
blessing  of  northern  homes — a  cheerful  fireside.  Hith- 
erto a  hole  in  the  roof  for  the  escape  of  the  smoke,  a  pit 
in  the  midst  of  the  floor  to  contain  the  fuel,  and  to  be 
covered  with  a  lid  when  the  curfew-bell  sounded  or 
night  came,  such  had  been  the  cheerless  and  inadequate 
means  of  warming. 

Though  not  without  a  bitter  resistance  on  the  part 
of  the  clergy,  men  began  to  think  that  pestilences  are 
not  punishments  inflicted  by  God  on  society  for  its 
religious  shortcomings,  but  the  physical  consequences 
of  filth  and  wretchedness;  that  the  proper  mode  of 
avoiding  them  is  not  by  praying  to  the  saints,  but  by 
insuring  personal  and  municipal  cleanliness.  In  the 
twelfth  century  it  was  found  necessary  to  pave  the 
streets  of  Paris,  the  stench  in  them  was  so  dreadful. 
At  once  dysenteries  and  spotted  fever  diminished;  a 
sanitary  condition  approaching  that  of  the  Moorish  cit- 
ies of  Spain,  which  had  been  paved  for  centuries,  was 
attained.  In  that  now  beautiful  metropolis  it  was  for- 
bidden to  keep  swine,  an  ordinance  resented  by  the 
monks  of  the  abbey  of  St.  Anthony,  who  demanded  that 


MUNICIPAL  IMPROVEMENTS.  315 

the  pigs  of  that  saint  should  go  where  they  chose;  the 
government  was  obliged  to  compromise  the  matter  by 
requiring  that  bells  should  be  fastened  to  the  animals' 
necks.  King  Philip,  the  son  of  Louis  the  Fat,  had  been 
killed  by  his  horse  stumbling  over  a  sow.  Prohibi- 
tions were  published  against  throwing  slops  out  of  the 
windows.  In  1870  an  eye-witness,  the  author  of  this 
book,  at  the  close  of  the  pontifical  rule  in  Rome,  found 
that,  in  walking  the  ordure-defiled  streets  of  that  city, 
it  was  more  necessary  to  inspect  the  earth  than  to  con- 
template the  heavens,  in  order  to  preserve  personal 
purity.  Until  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury the  streets  of  Berlin  were  never  swept.  There  was 
a  law  that  every  countryman,  who  came  to  market  with 
a  cart,  should  carry  back  a  load  of  dirt! 

Paving  was  followed  by  attempts,  often  of  an  imper- 
fect kind,  at  the  construction  of  drains  and  sewers.  It 
had  become  obvious  to  all  reflecting  men  that  these 
were  necessary  to  the  preservation  of  health,  not  only 
in  towns,  but  in  isolated  houses.  Then  followed  the 
lighting  of  the  public  thoroughfares.  At  first  houses 
facing  the  streets  were  compelled  to  have  candles  or 
lamps  in  their  windows;  next  the  system  that  had  been 
followed  with  so  much  advantage  in  Cordova  and  Gra- 
nada— of  having  public  lamps — was  tried,  but  this  was 
not  brought  to  perfection  until  the  present  century, 
when  lighting  by  gas  was  invented.  Contemporaneous- 
ly with  public  lamps  were  improved  organizations  for 
night-watchmen  and  police. 

By  the  sixteenth  century,  mechanical  inventions  and 
manufacturing  improvements  were  exercising  a  conspic- 
uous influence  on  domestic  and  social  life.  There  were 
looking-glasses  and  clocks  on  the  walls,  mantels  over  the 
fireplaces.  Though  in  many  districts  the  kitchen-fire 


316  DOMESTIC  IMPROVEMENTS. 

was  still  supplied  with  turf,  the  use  of  coal  began  to 
prevail.  The  table  in  the  dining-room  offered  new  deli- 
cacies; commerce  was  bringing  to  it  foreign  products; 
the  coarse  drinks  of  the  North  were  supplanted  by  the 
delicate  wines  of  the  South.  Ice-houses  were  con- 
structed. The  bolting  of  flour,  introduced  at  the  wind- 
mills, had  given  whiter  and  finer  bread.  By  degrees 
things  that  had  been  rarities  became  common — Indian- 
corn,  the  potato,  the  turkey,  and,  conspicuous  in  the 
long  list,  tobacco.  Forks,  an  Italian  invention,  displaced 
the  filthy  use  of  the  fingers.  It  may  be  said  that  the 
diet  of  civilized  men  now  underwent  a  radical  change. 
Tea  came  from  China,  coffee  from  Arabia,  the  use  of 
sugar  from  India,  and  these  to  no  insignificant  degree 
supplanted  fermented  liquors.  Carpets  replaced  on  the 
floors  the  layer  of  straw;  in  the  chambers  there  ap- 
peared better  beds,  in  the  wardrobes  cleaner  and  more 
frequently-changed  clothing.  In  many  towns  the  aque- 
duct was  substituted  for  the  public  fountain  and  the 
street-pump.  Ceilings  which  in  the  old  days  would 
have  been  dingy  with  soot  and  dirt,  were  now  decorated 
with  ornamental  frescoes.  Baths  were  more  commonly 
resorted  to;  there  was  less  need  to  use  perfumery  for 
the  concealment  of  personal  odors.  An  increasing  taste 
for  the  innocent  pleasures  of  horticulture  was  mani- 
fested, by  the  introduction  of  many  foreign  flowers  in 
the  gardens — the  tuberose,  the  auricula,  the  crown  im- 
perial, the  Persian  lily,  the  ranunculus,  and  African 
marigolds.  In  the  streets  there  appeared  sedans,  then 
close  carriages,  and  at  length  hackney-coaches. 

Among  the  dull  rustics  mechanical  improvements 
forced  their  way,  and  gradually  attained,  in  the  imple- 
ments for  ploughing,  sowing,  mowing,  reaping,  thrash- 
ing, the  perfection  of  our  own  times. 


MERCANTILE  INVENTIONS.  317 

It  began  to  be  recognized,  in  spite  of  the  preaching 
of  the  mendicant  orders,  that  poverty  is  the  source  of 
crime,  the  obstruction  to  knowledge;  that  the  pursuit  of 
riches  by  commerce  is  far  better  than  the  acquisition 
of  power  by  war.  For,  though  it  may  be  true,  as  Mon- 
tesquieu says,  that,  while  commerce  unites  nations,  it 
antagonizes  individuals  and  makes  a  traffic  of  morality, 
it  alone  can  give  unity  to  the  world;  its  dream,  its  hope, 
is  universal  peace. 

Though,  instead  of  a  few  pages,  it  would  require  vol- 
umes to  record  adequately  the  ameliorations  that  took 
place  in  domestic  and  social  life  after  science  began  to 
exert  its  beneficent  influences,  and  inventive  talent  came 
to  the  aid  of  industry,  there  are  some  things  which  can- 
not be  passed  in  silence.  From  the  port  of  Barcelona 
the  Spanish  khalifs  had  carried  on  an  enormous  com- 
merce, and  they  with  their  coadjutors — Jewish  merchants 
— had  adopted  or  originated  many  commercial  inven- 
tions, which,  with  matters  of  pure  science,  they  had 
transmitted  to  the  trading  communities  of  Europe.  The 
art  of  book-keeping  by  double  entry  was  thus  brought 
into  Upper  Italy.  The  different  kinds  of  insurance 
were  adopted,  though  strenuously  resisted  by  the  clergy. 
They  opposed  fire  and  marine  insurance,  on  the  ground 
that  it  is  a  tempting  of  Providence.  Life  insurance 
was  regarded  as  an  act  of  interference  with  the  conse- 
quences of  God's  will.  Houses  for  lending  money  on 
interest  and  on  pledges,  that  is,  banking  and.  pawnbrok- 
ing  establishments,  were  bitterly  denounced,  and  espe- 
cially was  indignation  excited  against  the  taking  of  high 
rates  of  interest,  which  was  stigmatized  as  usury — a 
feeling  existing  in  some  backward  communities  up  to 
the  present  day.  Bills  of  exchange  in  the  present  form 
and  terms  were  adopted,  the  office  of  the  public  notary 


318  MEDICAL  IMPROVEMENTS. 

established,  and  protests  for  dishonored  obligations  re- 
sorted to.  Indeed,  it  may  be  said,  with  but  little  exag- 
geration, that  the  commercial  machinery  now  used  was 
thus  introduced.  I  have  already  remarked  that,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  discovery  of  America,  the  front  of  Eu- 
rope had  been  changed.  Many  rich  Italian  merchants, 
and  many  enterprising  Jews,  had  settled  in  Holland, 
England,  France,  and  brought  into  those  countries  vari- 
ous mercantile  devices.  The  Jews,  who  cared  nothing 
about  papal  maledictions,  were  enriched  by  the  pontifi- 
cal action  in  relation  to  the  lending  of  money  at  high 
interest;  but  Pius  II.,  perceiving  the  mistake  that  had 
been  made,  withdrew  his  opposition.  Pawnbroking  es- 
tablishments were  finally  authorized  by  Leo  X.,  who 
threatened  excommunication  of  those  who  wrote  against 
them.  In  their  turn  the  Protestants  now  exhibited  a 
dislike  against  establishments  thus  authorized  by  Rome. 
As  the  theological  dogma,  that  the  plague,  like  the 
earthquake,  is  an  unavoidable  visitation  from  God  for 
the  sins  of  men,  began  to  be-  doubted,  attempts  were 
made  to  resist  its  progress  by  the  establishment  of  quar- 
antines. When  the  Mohammedan  discovery  of  inocu- 
lation was  brought  from  Constantinople  in  1721,  by 
Lady  Mary  Wortley  Montagu,  it  was  so  strenuously  re- 
sisted by  the  clergy,  that  nothing  short  of  its  adoption 
by  the  royal  family  of  England  brought  it  into  use.  A 
similar  resistance  was  exhibited  when  Jenner  introduced 
his  great  improvement,  vaccination;  yet  a  century  ago 
it  was  the  exception  to  see  a  face  unpitted  by  small- 
pox— now  it  is  the  exception  to  see  one  so  disfigured. 
In  like  manner,  when  the  great  American  discovery  of 
anaesthetics  was  applied  in  obstetrical  cases,  it  was  dis- 
couraged, not  so  much  for  physiological  reasons,  as  un- 
der the  pretense  that  it  was  an  impious  attempt  to  escape 


MAGIC  AND  MIRACLES.  319 

from  the  curse  denounced  against  all  women  in  Genesis 
iii.  16. 

Inventive  ingenuity  did  not  restrict  itself  to  the 
production  of  useful  contrivances,  it  added  amusing 
ones.  Soon  after  the  introduction  of  science  into  Italy, 
the  houses  of  the  virtuosi  began  to  abound  in  all  kinds 
of  curious  mechanical  surprises,  and,  as  they  were 
termed,  magical  effects.  In  the  latter  the  invention  of 
the  magic-lantern  greatly  assisted.  Not  without  reason 
did  the  ecclesiastics  detest  experimental  philosophy,  for 
a  result  of  no  little  importance  ensued — the  juggler  be- 
came a  successful  rival  to  the  miracle-worker.  The 
pious  frauds  enacted  in  the  churches  lost  their  wonder 
when  brought  into  competition  with  the  tricks  of  the 
conjurer  in  the  market-place:  he  breathed  flame,  walked 
on  burning  coals,  held  red-hot  iron  in  his  teeth,  drew 
basketfuls  of  eggs  out  of  his  mouth,  worked  miracles 
by  marionettes.  Yet  the  old  idea  of  the  supernatural 
was  with  difficulty  destroyed.  A  horse,  whose  master 
had  taught  him  many  tricks,  was  tried  at  Lisbon  in  1601, 
found  guilty  of  being  possessed  by  the  devil,  and  was 
burnt.  Still  later  than  that  many  witches  were  brought 
to  the  stake. 

Once  fairly  introduced,  discovery  and  invention  have 
unceasingly  advanced  at  an  accelerated  pace.  Each  con- 
tinually reacted  on  the  other,  continually  they  sapped 
supernaturalism.  De  Dominis  commenced,  and  New- 
ton completed,  the  explanation  of  the  rainbow;  they 
showed  that  it  was  not  the  weapon  of  warfare  of  God, 
but  the  accident  of  rays  of  light  in  drops  of  water.  De 
Dominis  was  decoyed  to  Eome  through  the  promise  of 
an  archbishopric,  and  the  hope  of  a  cardinal's  hat.  He 
was  lodged  in  a  fine  residence,  but  carefully  watched. 
Accused  of  having  suggested  a  concord  between  Eome 


320  DISCOVERIES  IN  ASTRONOMY  AND  CHEMISTRY. 

and  England,  he  was  imprisoned  in  the  castle  of  St. 
Angelo,  and  there  died.  He  was  brought  in  his  coffin 
before  an  ecclesiastical  tribunal,  adjudged  guilty  of 
heresy,  and  his  body,  with  a  heap  of  heretical  books,  was 
cast  into  the  flames.  Franklin,  by  demonstrating  the 
identity  of  lightning  and  electricity,  depfived  Jupiter 
of  his  thunder-bolt.  The  marvels  of  superstition  were 
displaced  by  the  wonders  of  truth.  The  two  telescopes, 
the  reflector  and  the  achromatic,  inventions  of  the  last 
century,  permitted  man  to  penetrate  into  the  infinite 
grandeurs  of  the  universe,  to  recognize,  as  far  as  such  a 
thing  is  possible,  its  illimitable  spaces,  its  measureless 
times;  and  a  little  later  the  achromatic  microscope  placed 
before  his  eyes  the  world  of  the  infinitely  small.  The 
air-balloon  carried  him  above  the  clouds,  the  diving- 
bell  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea.  The  thermometer  gave 
him  true  measures  of  the  variations  of  heat;  the  barome- 
ter, of  the  pressure  of  the  air.  The  introduction  of  the 
balance  imparted  exactness  to  chemistry,  it  proved  the 
indestructibility  of  matter.  The  discovery  of  oxygen, 
hydrogen,  and  many  other  gases,  the  isolation  of  alumi- 
num, calcium,  and  other  metals,  showed  that  earth  and 
air  and  water  are  not  elements.  With  an  enterprise 
that  can  never  be  too  much  commended,  advantage  was 
taken  of  the  transits  of  Venus,  and,  by  sending  expedi- 
tions to  different  regions,  the  distance  of  the  earth  from 
the  sun  was  determined.  The  step  that  European  intel- 
lect had  made  between  1456  and  1759  was  illustrated 
by  Ilalley^s  comet.  When  it  appeared  in.  the  former 
year,  it  was  considered  as  the  harbinger  of  the  vengeance 
of  God,  the  dispenser  of  the  most  dreadful  of  his  retri- 
butions, war,  pestilence,  famine.  By  order  of  the  pope, 
all  the  church-bells  in  Europe  were  rung  to  scare  it 
away,  the  faithful  were  commanded  to  add  each  day 


MISCELLANEOUS  IMPROVEMENTS.  321 

another  prayer;  and,  as  their  prayers  had  often  in  so 
marked  a  manner  been  answered  in  eclipses  and 
droughts  and  rains,  so  on  this  occasion  it  was  declared 
that  a  victory  over  the  comet  had  been  vouchsafed  to 
the  pope.  But,  in  the  mean  time,  Halley,  guided  by  the 
revelations  of  Kepler  and  Newton,  had  discovered  that 
its  motions,  so  far  from  being  controlled  by  the  supplica- 
tions of  Christendom,  were  guided  in  an  elliptic  orbit 
by  destiny.  Knowing  that  Nature  had  denied  to  him 
an  opportunity  of  witnessing  the  fulfillment  of  his  dar- 
ing prophecy,  he  besought  the  astronomers  of  the  suc- 
ceeding generation  to  watch  for  its  return  in  1759,  and 
in  that  year  it  came. 

Whoever  will  in  a  spirit  of  impartiality  examine 
what  had  been  done  by  Catholicism  for  the  intellectual 
and  material  advancement  of  Europe,  during  her  long 
reign,  and  what  has  been  done  by  science  in  its  brief 
period  of  action,  can,  I  am  persuaded,  come  to  no  other 
conclusion  than  this,  that,  in  instituting  a  comparison, 
he  has  established  a  contrast.  And  yet,  how  imperfect, 
how  inadequate  is  the  catalogue  of  facts  I  have  fur- 
nished in  the  foregoing  pages!  I  have  said  nothing  of 
the  spread  of  instruction  by  the  diffusion  of  the  arts  of 
reading  and  writing,  through  public  schools,  and  the 
consequent  creation  of  a  reading  community;  the  modes 
of  manufacturing  public  opinion  by  newspapers  and  re- 
views, the  power  of  journalism,  the  diffusion  of  informa- 
tion public  and  private  by  the  post-office  and  cheap 
mails,  the  individual  and  social  advantages  of  newspaper 
advertisements.  I  have  said  nothing  of  the  establish- 
ment of  hospitals,  the  first  exemplar  of  which  was  the 
Invalides  of  Paris;  nothing  of  the  improved  prisons, 
reformatories,  penitentiaries,  asylums,  the  treatment  of 
lunatics,  paupers,  criminals;  nothing  of  the  construction 


322  INVENTIONS  AND  DISCOVERIES. 

of  canals,  of  sanitary  engineering,  or  of  census  reports; 
nothing  of  the  invention  of  stereotyping,  bleaching  by 
chlorine,  the  cotton-gin,  or  of  the  marvelous  contriv- 
ances with  which  cotton-mills  are  filled — contrivances 
which  have  givefc  us  cheap  clothing,  and  therefore 
added  to  cleanliness,  comfort,  health;  nothing  of  the 
grand  advancement  of  medicine  and  surgery,  or  of  the 
discoveries  in  physiology,  the  cultivation  of  the  fine  arts, 
the  improvement  of  agriculture  and  rural  economy,  the 
introduction  of  chemical  manures  and  farm-machinery. 
I  have  not  referred  to  the  manufacture  of  iron  and  its 
vast  affiliated  industries;  to  those  of  textile  fabrics;  to 
the  collection  of  museums  of  natural  history,  antiquities, 
curiosities.  I  have  passed  unnoticed  the  great  subject  of 
the  manufacture  of  machinery  by  itself — the  invention 
of  the  slide-rest,  the  planing-machine,  and  many  other 
contrivances  by  which  engines  can  be  constructed  with 
almost  mathematical  correctness.  I  have  said  nothing 
adequate  about  the  railway  system,  or  the  electric  tele- 
graph, nor  about  the  calculus,  or  lithography,  the  air- 
pump,  or  the  voltaic  battery;  the  discovery  of  Uranus 
or  Neptune,  and  more  than  a  hundred  asteroids;  the 
relation  of  meteoric  streams  to  comets;  nothing  of  the 
expeditions  by  land  and  sea  that  have  been  sent  forth 
by  various  governments  for  the  determination  of  im- 
portant astronomical  or  geographical  questions;  nothing 
of  the  costly  and  accurate  experiments  they  have  caused 
to  be  made  for  the  ascertainment  of  fundamental  phys- 
ical data.  I  have  been  so  unjust  to  our  own  century 
that  I  have  made  no  allusion  to  some  of  its  greatest 
scientific  triumphs:  its  grand  conceptions  in  natural 
history;  its  discoveries  in  magnetism  and  electricity; 
its  invention  of  the  beautiful  art  of  photography;  its 
applications  of  spectrum  analysis;  its  attempts  to  bring 


ADVANTAGES  ARISING  FROM  THEM.         323 

chemistry  under  the  three  laws  of  Avogadro,  of  Boyle 
and  Mariotte,  and  of  Charles;  its  artificial  production 
of  organic  substances  from  inorganic  material,  of  which 
the  philosophical  consequences  are  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance; its  reconstruction  of  physiology  by  laying  the 
foundation  of  that  science  on  chemistry;  its  improve- 
ments and  advances  in  topographical  surveying,  and  in 
the  correct  representation  of  the  surface  of  the  globe. 
I  have  said  nothing  about  rifled-guns  and  armored  ships, 
nor  of  the  revolution  that  has  been  made  in  the  art  of 
war;  nothing  of  that  gift  to  women,  the  sewing-machine; 
nothing  of  the  noble  contentions  and  triumphs  of  the  arts 
of  peace — the  industrial  exhibitions  and  world's  fairs. 

What  a  catalogue  have  we  here,  and  yet  how  imper- 
fect! It  gives  merely  a  random  glimpse  at  an  ever-in- 
creasing intellectual  commotion — a  mention  of  things  as 
they  casually  present  themselves  to  view.  How  striking 
the  contrast  between  this  literary,  this  scientific  activity, 
and  the  stagnation  of  the  middle  ages! 

The  intellectual  enlightenment  that  surrounds  this 
activity  has  imparted  unnumbered  blessings  to  the  hu- 
man race.  In  Russia  it  has  emancipated  a  vast  serf- 
population;  in  America  it  has  given  freedom  to  four 
million  negro  slaves.  In  place  of  the  sparse  dole  of 
the  monastery-gate,  it  has  organized  charity  and  direct- 
ed legislation  to  the  poor.  It  has  shown  medicine  its 
true  function,  to  prevent  rather  than  to  cure  disease. 
In  statesmanship  it  has  introduced  scientific  methods, 
displacing  random  and  empirical  legislation  by  a  labori- 
ous ascertainment  of  social  facts  previous  to  the  appli- 
cation of  legal  remedies.  So  conspicuous,  so  impressive 
is  the  manner  in  which  it  is  elevating  men,  that  the 
hoary  nations  of  Asia  seek  to  participate  in  the  boon. 
Let  us  riot  forget  that  our  action  on  them  must  be  at- 


324      AMERICAN  AND  FRENCH  REVOLUTIONS. 

tended  by  their  reaction  on  us.  If  the  destruction  of 
paganism  was  completed  when  all  the  gods  were  brought 
to  Rome  and  confronted  there,  now,  when  by  our  won- 
derful facilities  of  locomotion  strange  nations  and  con- 
flicting religions  are  brought  into  common  presence — 
the  Mohammedan,  the  Buddhist,  the  Brahman — modifi- 
cations of  them  all  must  ensue.  In  that  conflict  science 
alone  will  stand  secure;  for  it  has  given  us  grander 
views  of  the  universe,  more  awful  views  of  God. 

The  spirit  that  has  imparted  life  to  this  movement, 
that  has  animated  these  discoveries  and  inventions,  is 
Individualism;  in  some  minds  the  hope  of  gain,  in  other 
and  nobler  ones  the  expectation  of  honor.  It  is,  then, 
not  to  be  wondered  at  that  this  principle  found  a  politi- 
cal embodiment,  and  that,  during  the  last  century,  on 
two  occasions,  it  gave  rise  to  social  convulsions — the 
American  and  the  French  Revolutions.  The  former  has 
ended  in  the  dedication  of  a  continent  to  Individualism 
— there,  under  republican  forms,  before  the  close  of  the 
present  century,  one  hundred  million  people,  with  no 
more  restraint  than  their  common  security  requires,  will 
be  pursuing  an  unfettered  career.  The  latter,  though 
it  has  modified  the  political  aspect  of  all  Europe,  and 
though  illustrated  by  surprising  military  successes,  has, 
thus  far,  not  consummated  its  intentions;  again  and 
again  it  has  brought  upon  France  fearful  disasters.  Her 
dual  form  of  government — her  allegiance  to  her  two 
sovereigns,  the  political  and  spiritual — has  made  her 
at  once  the  leader  and  the  antagonist  of  modern  prog- 
ress. With  one  hand  she  has  enthroned  Reason,  with 
the  other  she  has  reestablished  and  sustained  the  pope. 
Nor  will  this  anomaly  in  her  conduct  cease  until  she  be- 
stows a  true  education  on  all  her  children,  even  on  those 
of  the  humblest  rustic. 


SCIENCE  AND  CIVILIZATION.  325 

The  intellectual  attack  made  on  existing  opinions  by 
the  French  Eevolution  was  not  of  a  scientific  but  of  a 
literary  character;  it  was  critical  and  aggressive.  But 
Science  has  never  been  an  aggressor.  She  has  always 
acted  on  the  defensive,  and  left  to  her  antagonist  the 
making  of  wanton  attacks.  Nevertheless,  literary  dis- 
sent is  not  of  such  ominous  import  as  scientific;  for  lit- 
erature is,  in  its  nature,  local — science  is  cosmopolitan. 

If,  now,  we  demand,  What  has  science  done  for  the 
promotion  of  modern  civilization;  what  has  it  done  for 
the  happiness,  the  well-being  of  society?  we  shall  find 
our  answer  in  the  same  manner  that  we  reached  a  just 
estimate  of  what  Latin  Christianity  had  done.  The  read- 
er of  the  foregoing  paragraphs  would  undoubtedly  infer 
that  there  must  have  been  an  amelioration  in  the  lot  of 
our  race;  but  when  we  apply  the  touchstone  of  statis- 
tics, that  inference  gathers  precision.  Systems  of  phi- 
losophy and  forms  of  religion  find  a  measure  of  their 
influence  on  humanity  in  census  returns.  Latin  Chris- 
tianity, in  a  thousand  years,  could  not  double  the  popu- 
lation of  Europe;  it  did  not -add  perceptibly  to  the  term 
of  individual  life.  But,  as  Dr.  Jarvis,  in  his  report  to 
the  Massachusetts  Board  of  Health,  has  stated,  at  the 
epoch  of  the  Eeformation  "  the  average  longevity  in 
Geneva  was  21.21  years;  between  1814  and  1833  it  was 
40.68;  as  large  a  number  of  persons  now  live  to  seventy 
years  as  lived  to  forty,  three  hundred  years  ago.  In 
1G93  the  British  Government  borrowed  money  by  sell- 
ing annuities  on  lives  from  infancy  upward,  on  the  ba- 
sis of  the  average  longevity.  The  contract  was  profit- 
able. Ninety-seven  years  later  another  tontine,  or  scale 
of  annuities,  on  the  basis  of  the  same  expectation  of  life 
as  in  the  previous  century,  was  issued.  These  latter  an- 
nuitants, however,  lived  so  much  longer  than  their  pre- 
23 


;;•_>»',  SCIENCE  AND  CIVILIZATION. 

decessors,  that  it  proved  to  be  a  very  costly  loan  for  the 
government.  It  was  found  that,  while  ten  thousand  of 
each  sex  in  the  first  tontine  died  under  the  age  of 
twenty-eight,  only  five  thousand  seven  hundred  and 
seventy-two  males  and  six  thousand  four  hundred  and 
sixteen  females  in  the  second  tontine  died  at  the  same 
age,  one  hundred  years  later." 

We  have  been  comparing  the  spiritual  with  the  prac- 
tical, the  imaginary  with  the  real.  The  maxims  that 
have  been  followed  in  the  earlier  and  the  later  period 
produced  their  inevitable  result.  In  the  former  that 
maxim  was,  "  Ignorance  is  the  mother  of  Devotion; " 
in  the  latter,  "  Knowledge  is  Power." 


CHAPTEE   XII. 

THE   IMPENDING   CRISIS. 

Indications  of  the  approach  of  a  religious  crisis. — The  predomi- 
nating Christian  Church,  the  Roman,  perceives  this  and 
makes  preparation  for  it. — Pius  IX.  convokes  an  (Ecumenical 
Council. — Relations  of  the  different  European  governments  to 
the  papacy. — Relations  of  the  Church  to  Science,  as  indicated 
by  the  Encyclical  Letter  and  the  Syllabus. 

Acts  of  the  Vatican  Council  in  relation  to  the  infallibility  of  the 
pope,  and  to  Science. — Abstract  of  decisions  arrived  at. 

Controversy  between  the  Prussian  Government  and  the  papacy. — 
It  is  a  contest  between  the  State  and  the  Church  for  suprem- 
acy.— Effect  of  dual  government  in  Europe. — Declaration  by 
the  Vatican  Council  of  its  position  as  to  Science. — The  dog- 
matic constitution  of  the  Catholic  faith. — Its  definitions 
respecting  God,  Revelation,  Faith,  Reason. — The  anathemas 
it  pronounces. — Its  denunciation  of  modern  civilization. 

The  Protestant  Evangelical  Alliance  and  its  acts. 

General  review  of  the  foregoing  definitions  and  acts. — Present 
condition  of  the  controversy,  and  its  future  prospects. 

No  one  who  is  acquainted  with  the  present  tone  of 
thought  in  Christendom  can  hide  from  himself  the  fact 
that  an  intellectual,  a  religious  crisis  is  impending. 

In  all  directions  we  see  the  lowering  skies,  we  hear 
the  mutterings  of  the  coming  storm.  In  Germany,  the 
national  party  is  arraying  itself  against  the  ultramon- 
tane; in  France,  the  men  of  progress  are  struggling 
against  the  unprogressive,  and  in  their  contest  the  po- 
litical supremacy  of  that  great  country  is  wellnigh  neu- 

327 


328  PREDOMINANCE  OP  CATHOLICITY. 

Inilizedor  lost.  In  Italy,Rome  has  passed  into  the  hands 
of  an  excommunicated  king.  The  sovereign  pontiff, 
feigning  that  he  is  a  prisoner,  is  fulminating  from  the 
Vatican  his  anathemas,  and,  in  tke  midst  of  the  most 
convincing  proofs  of  his  manifold  errors,  asserting  his 
own  infallibility.  A  Catholic  archbishop  with  truth  de- 
clares that  the  whole  civil  society  of  Europe  seems  to  be 
withdrawing  itself  in  its  public  life  from  Christianity. 
In  England  and  America,  religious  persons  perceive 
with  dismay  that  the  intellectual  basis  of  faith  has  been 
undermined  by  the  spirit  of  the  age.  They  prepare  for 
the  approaching  disaster  in  the  best  manner  they  can. 

The  most  serious  trial  through  which  society  can 
pass  is  encountered  in  the  exuviation  of  its  religious 
restraints.  The  history  of  Greece  and  the  history  of 
Rome  exhibit  to  us  in  an  impressive  manner  how  great 
are  the  perils.  But  it  is  not  given  to  religions  to  en- 
dure forever.  They  necessarily  undergo  transformation 
with  the  intellectual  development  of  man.  How  many 
countries  are  there  professing  the  same  religion  now 
that  they  did  at  the  birth  of  Christ? 

It  is  estimated  that  the  entire  population  of  Europe 
is  about  three  hundred  and  one  million.  Of  these,  one 
hundred  and  eighty-five  million  are  Roman  Catholics, 
thirty-three  million  are  Greek  Catholics.  Of  Protes- 
tants there  are  seventy-one  million,  separated  into  many 
sects.  Of  Jews,  five  million;  of  Mohammedans,  seven 
million. 

Of  the  religious  subdivisions  of  America  an  accurate 
numerical  statement  cannot  be  given.  The  whole  of 
Christian  South  America  is  Roman  Catholic,  the  same 
may  be  said  of  Central  America  and  of  Mexico,  as  also 
of  the  Spanish  and  French  West  India  possessions.  In 
the  United  States  and  Canada  the  Protestant  population 


PREDOMINANCE  OP  CATHOLICITY.  329 

predominates.  To  Australia  the  same  remark  applies. 
In  India  the  sparse  Christian  population  sinks  into  in- 
significance in  presence  of  two  hundred  million  Mo- 
hammedans and  other  Oriental  denominations.  The 
Roman  Catholic  Church  is  the  most  widely  diffused  and 
the  most  powerfully  organized  of  all  modern  societies. 
It  is  far  more  a  political  than  a  religious  combination. 
Its  principle  is  that  all  power  is  in  the  clergy,  and  that 
for  laymen  there  is  only  the  privilege  of  obedience. 
The  republican  forms  under  which  the  Churches  existed 
in  primitive  Christianity  have  gradually  merged  into  an 
absolute  centralization,  with  a  man  as  vice-God  at  its 
head.  This  Church  asserts  that  the  divine  commission 
under  which  it  acts  comprises  civil  government;  that  it 
has  a  right  to  use  the  state  for  its  own  purposes,  but 
that  the  state  has  no  right  to  intermeddle  with  it;  that 
even  in  Protestant  countries  it  is  not  merely  a  coor- 
dinate government,  but  the  sovereign  power.  It  insists 
that  the  state  has  no  rights  over  any  thing  which  it  de- 
clares to  be  in  its  domain,  and  that  Protestantism,  being 
a  mere  rebellion,  has  no  rights  at  all;  that  even  in  Prot- 
estant communities  the  Catholic  bishop  is  the  only  law- 
ful spiritual  pastor. 

It  is  plain,  therefore,  that  of  professing  Christians 
the  vast  majority  are  Catholic;  and  such  is  the  authori- 
tative demand  of  the  papacy  for  supremacy,  that,  in  any 
survey  of  the  present  religious  condition  of  Christendom, 
regard  must  be  mainly  had  to  its  acts.  Its  movements  are 
guided  by  the  highest  intelligence  and  skill.  Catholicism 
obeys  the  orders  of  one  man,  and  has  therefore  a  unity, 
a  compactness,  a  power,  which  Protestant  denominations 
do  not  possess.  Moreover,  it  derives  inestimable  strength 
from  the  souvenirs  of  the  great  name  of  Rome. 

Unembarrassed   by   any   hesitating   sentiment,   the 


330  THE  (ECUMENICAL  COUNCIL. 

papacy  has  contemplated  the  coming  intellectual  crisis. 
It  has  pronounced  its  decision,  and  occupied  what  seems 
to  it  to  be  the  most  advantageous  ground. 

This  definition  of  position  we  find  in  the  acts  of  the 
late  Vatican  Council. 

Pius  IX.,  by  a  bull  dated  June  29,  1868,  convoked 
an  (Ecumenical  Council,  to  meet  in  Rome,  on  December 
8,  1869.  Its  sessions  ended  in  July,  1870.  Among  other 
matters  submitted  to  its  consideration,  two  stand  forth 
in  conspicuous  prominence — they  are  the  assertion  of 
the  infallibility  of  the  Roman  pontiff,  and  the  defini- 
tion of  the  relations  of  religion  to  science. 

But  the  convocation  of  the  Council  was  far  from 
meeting  with  general  approval. 

The  views  of  the  Oriental  Churches  were,  for  the 
most  part,  unfavorable.  They  affirmed  that  they  saw 
a  desire  in  the  Roman  pontiff  to  set  himself  up  as  the 
head  of  Christianity,  whereas  they  recognized  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  alone  as  the  head  of  the  Church.  They 
believed  that  the  Council  would  only  lead  to  new  quar- 
rels and  scandals.  The  sentiment  of  these  venerable 
Churches  is  well  shown  by  the  incident  that,  when,  in 
1867,  the  Nestorian  Patriarch  Simeon  had  been  invited 
by  the  Chaldean  Patriarch  to  return  to  Roman  Catholic 
unity,  he,  in  his  reply,  showed  that  there  was  no  pros- 
pect for  harmonious  action  between  the  East  and  the 
West:  "  You  invite  me  to  kiss  humbly  the  slipper  of 
the  Bishop  of  Rome;  but  is  he  not,  in  every  respect,  a 
man  like  yourself — is  his  dignity  superior  to  yours? 
We  will  never  permit  to  be  introduced  into  our  holy 
temples  of  worship  images  and  statues,  which  are  noth- 
ing but  abominable  and  impure  idols.  What!  shall  we 
attribute  to  Almighty  God  a  mother,  as  you  dare  to  do? 
Away  from  us,  such  blasphemy!  " 


EXPECTATIONS  OF  THE  PAPACY.  331 

Eventually,  the  patriarchs,  archbishops,  and  bishops, 
from  all  regions  of  the  world,  who  took  part  in  this 
Council,  were  seven  hundred  and  four. 

Rome  had  seen  very  plainly  that  Science  was  not 
only  rapidly  undermining  the  dogmas  of  the  papacy,  but 
was  gathering  great  political  power.  She  recognized 
that  all  over  Europe  there  was  a  fast-spreading  seces- 
sion among  persons  of  education,  and  that  its  true  focus 
was  North  Germany. 

She  looked,  therefore,  with  deep  interest  on  the 
Prusso-Austrian  War,  giving  to  Austria  whatever  en- 
couragement she  could.  The  battle  of  Sadowa  was  a 
bitter  disappointment  to  her. 

With  satisfaction  again  she  looked  upon  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  Franco-Prussian  War,  not  doubting  that 
its  issue  would  be  favorable  to  France,  and  therefore 
favorable  to  her.  Here,  again,  she  was  doomed  to  dis- 
appointment at  Sedan. 

Having  now  no  further  hope,  for  many  years  to 
come,  from  external  war,  she  resolved  to  see  what  could 
be  done  by  internal  insurrection,  and  the  present  move- 
ment in  the  German  Empire  is  the  result  of  her  machi- 
nations. 

Had  Austria  or  had  France  succeeded,  Protestant- 
ism would  have  been  overthrown  along  with  Prussia. 

But,  while  these  military  movements  were  being 
carried  on,  a  movement  of  a  different,  an  intellectual 
kind,  was  engaged  in.  Its  principle  was,  to  restore  the 
worn-out  mediaeval  doctrines  and  practices,  carrying 
them  to  an  extreme,  no  matter  what  the  consequences 
might  be. 

Not  only  was  it  asserted  that  the  papacy  has  a  di- 
vine right  to  participate  in  the  government  of  all  coun- 
tries, coordinately  with  their  temporal  authorities,  but 


332   ENCYCLICAL  LETTER  AND  SYLLABUS. 

that  the  supremacy  of  Rome  in  this  matter  must  be 
recognized;  and  that  in  any  question  between  them  the 
temporal  authority  must  conform  itself  to  her  order. 

And,  since  the  endangering  of  her  position  had  been 
mainly  brought  about  by  the  progress  of  science,  she 
presumed  to  define  its  boundaries  and  prescribe  limits 
to  its  authority.  Still  more,  she  undertook  to  denounce 
modern  civilization. 

These  measures  were  contemplated  soon  after  the 
return  of  his  Holiness  from  Gaeta  in  1848,  and  were 
undertaken  by  the  advice  of  the  Jesuits,  who,  lingering 
in  the  hope  that  God  would  work  the  impossible,  sup- 
posed that  the  papacy,  in  its  old  age,  might  be  rein- 
vigorated.  The  organ  of  the  Curia  proclaimed  the  ab- 
solute independence  of  the  Church  as  regards  the  state; 
the  dependence  of  the  bishops  on  the  pope;  of  the  dio- 
cesan clergy  on  the  bishops;  the  obligation  of  the  Prot- 
estants to  abandon  their  atheism,  and  return  to  the  fold; 
the  absolute  condemnation  of  all  kinds  of  toleration.  In 
December,  1854,  in  an  assembly  of  bishops,  the  pope 
had  proclaimed  the  dogma  of  the  immaculate  concep- 
tion. Ten  years  subsequently  he  put  forth  the  cele- 
brated Encyclical  Letter  and  the  Syllabus. 

The  Encyclical  Letter  is  dated  December  8,  1864. 
It  was  drawn  up  by  learned  ecclesiastics,  and  subse- 
quently debated  at  the  Congregation  of  the  Holy  Office, 
then  forwarded  to  prelates,  and  finally  gone  over  by  the 
pope  and  cardinals. 

Many  of  the  clergy  objected  to  its  condemnation  of 
modern  civilization.  Some  of  the  cardinals  were  re- 
luctant to  concur  in  it.  The  Catholic  press  accepted 
it,  not,  however,  without  misgivings  and  regrets.  The 
Protestant  governments  put  no  obstacle  in  its  way;  the 
Catholic  were  embarrassed  by  it.  France  allowed  the 


ENCYCLICAL  LETTER  AND  SYLLABUS.   333 

publication  only  of  that  portion  proclaiming  the  jubilee; 
Austria  and  Italy  permitted  its  introduction,  but  with- 
held their  approval.  The  political  press  and  legislatures 
of  Catholic  countries  gave  it  an  unfavorable  reception. 
Many  deplored  it  as  likely  to  widen  the  breach  be- 
tween the  Church  and  modern  society.  The  Italian 
press  regarded  it  as  determining  a  war,  without  .truce  or 
armistice,  between  the  papacy  and  modern  civilization. 
Even  in  Spain  there  were  journals  that  regretted  "  the 
obstinacy  and  blindness  of  the  court  of  Home  in  brand- 
ing and  condemning  modern  civilization." 

It  denounces  that  "  most  pernicious  and  insane  opin- 
ion, that  liberty  of  conscience  and  of  worship  is  the 
right  of  every  man,  and  that  this  right  ought,  in  every 
well-governed  state,  to  be  proclaimed  and  asserted  by 
law;  and  that  the  will  of  the  people,  manifested  by 
public  opinion  (as  it  is  called),  or  by  other  means,  con- 
stitutes a  supreme  law,  independent  of  all  divine  and 
human  rights."  It  denies  the  right  of  parents  to  edu- 
cate their  children  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  It  de- 
nounces "the  impudence"  of  those  who  presume  to  sub- 
ordinate the  authority  of  the  Church  and  of  the  Apos- 
tolic See,  "  conferred  upon  it  by  Christ  our  Lord,  to  the 
judgment  of  the  civil  authority."  His  Holiness  com- 
mends, to  the  venerable  brothers  to  whom  the  Encycli- 
cal is  addressed,  incessant  prayer,  and,  "in  order  that 
God  may  accede  the  more  easily  to  our  and  your  prayers, 
let  us  employ  in  all  confidence,  as  our  mediatrix  with 
him,  the  Virgin  Mary,  mother  of  God,  who  sits  as  a 
queen  upon  the  right  hand  of  her  only-begotten  Son, 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  a  golden  vestment,  clothed 
around  with  various  adornments.  There  is  nothing  she 
cannot  obtain  from  him." 

Plainly,  the  principle  now  avowed  by  the  papacy 


334  CONVOCATION  OF  THE  COUNCIL. 

must  bring  it  into  collision  even  with  governments 
which  had  heretofore  maintained  amicable  relations 
with  it.  Great  dissatisfaction  was  manifested  by  Rus- 
sia, and  the  incidents  that  ensued  drew  forth  from  his 
Holiness  an  allocution  (November,  1866)  condemnatory 
of  the  course  of  that  government.  To  this,  Russia  re- 
plied, by  declaring  the  Concordat  of  1867  abrogated. 

Undeterred  by  the  result  of  the  battle  of  Sadowa 
(July,  1866),  though  it  was  plain  that  the  political  con- 
dition of  Europe  was  now  profoundly  affected,  and  es- 
pecially the  relations  of  the  papacy,  the  pope  delivered 
an  allocution  (June  27,  1867),  confirming  the  Encyclical 
and  Syllabus.  He  announced  his  intention  of  convok- 
ing an  (Ecumenical  Council. 

Accordingly,  as  we  have  already  mentioned,  in  the 
following  year  (June  29,  1868)  a  bull  was  issued  con- 
voking that  Council.  Misunderstandings,  however,  had 
now  sprung  up  with  Austria.  The  Austrian  Reichsrath 
had  adopted  laws  introducing  equality  of  civil  rights 
for  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  empire,  and  restricting  the 
influence  of  the  Church.  This  produced  on  the  part  of 
the  papal  government  an  expostulation.  Acting  as  Rus- 
sia had  done,  the  Austrian  Government  found  it  neces- 
sary to  abrogate  the  Concordat  of  1855. 

In  France,  as  above  stated,  the  publication  of  the 
entire  Syllabus  was  not  permitted;  but  Prussia,  de- 
sirous of  keeping  on  good  terms  with  the  papacy,  did 
not  disallow  it.  The  exacting  disposition  of  the  papacy 
increased.  It  was  openly  declared  that  the  faithful 
must  now  sacrifice  to  the  Church,  property,  life,  and 
even  their  intellectual  convictions.  The  Protestants 
and  the  Greeks  were  invited  to  tender  their  submission. 

On  the  appointed  day,  the  Council  opened.  Its  ob- 
jects were,  to  translate  the  Syllabus  into  practice,  to 


THE  VATICAN  COUNCIL.  335 

establish  the  dogma  of  papal  infallibility,  and  define 
the  relations  of  religion  to  science.  Every  preparation 
had  been  made  that  the  points  determined  on  should 
be  carried.  The  bishops  were  informed  that  they  were 
coming  to  Home  not  to  deliberate,  but  to  sanction  de- 
crees previously  made  by  an  infallible  pope.  No  idea 
was  entertained  of  any  such  thing  as  free  discussion. 
The  minutes  of  the  meetings  were  not  permitted  to  be 
inspected;  the  prelates  of  the  opposition  .were  hardly 
allowed  to  speak.  On  January  22,  1870,  a  petition,  re- 
questing that  the  infallibility  of  the  pope  should  be 
defined,  was  presented;  an  opposition  petition  of  the 
minority  was  offered.  Hereupon,  the  deliberations  of 
the  minority  were  forbidden,  and  their  publications  pro- 
hibited. And,  though  the  Curia  had  provided  a  com- 
pact majority,  it  was  found  expedient  to  issue  an  order 
that  to  carry  any  proposition  it  was  not  necessary  that 
the  vote  should  be  near  unanimity,  a  simple  majority 
sufficed.  The  remonstrances  of  the  minority  were  al- 
together unheeded. 

As  the  Council  pressed  forward  to  its  object,  foreign 
authorities  became  alarmed  at  its  reckless  determination. 
A  petition  drawn  up  by  the  Archbishop  of  Vienna,  and 
signed  by  several  cardinals  and  archbishops,  entreated 
his  Holiness  not  to  submit  the  dogma  of  infallibility  for 
consideration,  "because  the  Church  has  to  sustain  at 
present  a  struggle  unknown  in  former  times,  against 
men  who  oppose  religion  itself  as  an  institution  baneful 
to  human  nature,  and  that  it  is  inopportune  to  impose 
upon  Catholic  nations,  led  into  temptation  by  so  many 
machinations,  more  dogmas  than  the  Council  of  Trent 
proclaimed/'  It  added  that  "  the  definition  demanded 
would  furnish  fresh  arms  to  the  enemies  of  religion,  to 
excite  against  the  Catholic  Church  the  resentment  of 


33d  THE   VATICAN  COUNCIL. 

men  avowedly  the  best."  The  Austrian  prime-minister 
addressed  a  protest  to  the  papal  government,  warning 
it  against  any  steps  that  might  lead  to  encroachments 
on  the  rights  of  Austria.  The  French  Government 
also  addressed  a  note,  suggesting  that  a  French  bishop 
should  explain  to  the  Council  the  condition  and  the 
rights  of  France.  To  this  the  papal  government  replied 
that  a  bishop  could  not  reconcile  the  double  duties  of 
an  ambassador  and  a  Father  of  the  Council.  Hereupon, 
the  French  Government,  in  a  very  respectful  note,  re- 
marked that,  to  prevent  ultra  opinions  from  becoming 
dogmas,  it  reckoned  on  the  moderation  of  the  bishops, 
and  the  prudence  of  the  Holy  Father;  and,  to  defend 
its  civil  and  political  laws  against  the  encroachments  of 
the  theocracy,  it  had  counted  on  public  reason  and  the 
patriotism  of  French  Catholics.  In  these  remonstrances 
the  North-German  Confederation  joined,  seriously  press- 
ing them  on  the  consideration  of  the  papal  govern- 
ment. 

On  April  23d,  Von  Arnim,  the  Prussian  embassa- 
dor,  united  with  Daru,  the  French  minister,  in  sug- 
gesting to  the  Curia  the  inexpediency  of  reviving  me- 
diaeval ideas.  The  minority  bishops,  thus  encouraged, 
demanded  now  that  the  relations  of  the  spiritual  to  the 
secular  power  should  be  determined  before  the  pope's 
infallibility  was  discussed,  and  that  it  should  be  settled 
whether  Christ  had  conferred  on  St.  Peter  and  his  suc- 
cessors a  power  over  kings  and  emperors. 

No  regard  was  paid  to  this,  not  even  delay  was  con- 
sented to.  The  Jesuits,  who  were  at  the  bottom  of  the 
movement,  carried  their  measures  through  the  packed 
assembly  with  a  high  hand.  The  Council  omitted  no 
device  to  screen  itself  from  popular  criticism.  Its  pro- 
ceedings were  conducted  with  the  utmost  secrecy;  all 


INFALLIBILITY  OF  THE  POPE.  337 

who  took  part  in  them  were  bound  by  a  solemn  oath 
to  observe  silence. 

On  July  13th  the  votes  were  taken.  Of  601  votes, 
451  were  affirmative.  Under  the  majority  rule,  the 
measure  was  pronounced  carried,  and,  five  days  subse- 
quently, the  pope  proclaimed  the  dogma  of  his  infalli- 
bility. It  has  often  been  remarked  that  this  was  the 
day  on  which  the  French  declared  war  against  Prussia. 
Eight  days  afterward  the  French  troops  were  withdrawn 
from  Home.  Perhaps  both  the  statesman  and  the  phi- 
losopher will  admit  that  an  infallible  pope  would  be 
a  great  harmonizing  element,  if  only  common-sense 
could  acknowledge  him. 

Hereupon,  the  King  of  Italy  addressed  an  autograph 
letter  to  the  pope,  setting  forth  in  very  respectful  terms 
the  necessity  that  his  troops  should  advance  and  occupy 
positions  "  indispensable  to  the  security  of  his  Holiness, 
and  the  maintenance  of  order; "  that,  while  satisfying 
the  national  aspirations,  the  chief  of  Catholicity,  sur- 
rounded by  the  devotion  of  the  Italian  populations, 
"  might  preserve  on  the  banks  of  the  Tiber  a  glorious 
seat,  independent  of  all  human  sovereignty." 

To  this  his  Holiness  replied  in  a  brief  and  caustic 
letter:  "  I  give  thanks  to  God,  who  has  permitted  your 
majesty  to  fill  the  last  days  of  my  life  with  bitterness! 
For  the  rest,  I  cannot  grant  certain  requests,  nor  conform 
with  certain  principles  contained  in  your  letter.  Again, 
I  call  upon  God,  and  into  his  hands  commit  my  cause, 
which  is  his  cause.  I  pray  God  to  grant  your  majesty 
many  graces,  to  free  you  from  dangers,  and  to  dispense 
to  you  his  mercy  which  you  so  much  need." 

The  Italian  troops  met  with  but  little  resistance. 
They  occupied  Home  on  September  20,  1870.  A  mani- 
festo was  issued,  setting  forth  the  details  of  a  plebisci- 


333  THE  ITALIAN  GOVERNMENT. 

turn,  the  vote  to  be  by  ballot,  the  question,  "  the  unifi- 
cation of  Italy/'  Its  result  showed  how  completely  the 
popular  mind  in  Italy  is  emancipated  from  theology. 
In  the  Roman  provinces  the  number  of  votes  on  the 
lists  was  167,548;  the  number  who  voted,  135,291;  the 
number  who  voted  for  annexation,  133,681;  the  num- 
ber who  voted  against  it,  1,507;  votes  annulled,  103. 
The  Parliament  of  Italy  ratified  the  vote  of  the  Roman 
people  for  annexation  by  a  vote  of  239  to  20.  A  royal 
decree  now  announced  the  annexation  of  the  Papal 
States  to  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  and  a  manifesto  was  is- 
sued indicating  the  details  of  the  arrangement.  It  de- 
clared that  "  by  these  concessions  the  Italian  Govern- 
ment seeks  to  prove  to  Europe  that  Italy  respects  the 
sovereignty  of  the  pope  in  conformity  with  the  prin- 
ciple of  a  free  Church  in  a  free  state." 

In  the  Prusso-Austrian  War  it  had  been  the  hope  of 
the  papacy  to  restore  the  German  Empire  under  Austria, 
and  make  Germany  a  Catholic  nation.  In  the  Franco- 
German  War  the  French  expected  ultramontane  sym- 
pathies in  Germany.  No  means  were  spared  to  excite 
Catholic  sentiment  against  the  Protestants.  No  vilifi- 
cation was  spared.  They  were  spoken  of  as  atheists; 
they  were  declared  incapable  of  being  honest  men;  their 
sects  were  pointed  out  as  indicating  that  their  secession 
was  in  a  state  of  dissolution.  "  The  followers  of  Luther 
are  the  most  abandoned  men  in  all  Europe."  Even  the 
pope  himself,  presuming  that  the  whole  world  had  for- 
gotten all  history,  did  n&t  hesitate  to  say,  "  Let  the  Ger- 
man people  understand  that  no  other  Church  but  that 
of  Rome  is  the  Church  of  freedom  and  progress." 

Meantime,  among  the  clergy  of  Germany  a  party 
was  organized  to  remonstrate  against,  and  even  resist, 
the  papal  usurpation.  It  protested  against  "  a  man  be- 


AFFAIRS  IN  PRUSSIA.  339 

ing  placed  on  the  throne  of  God,"  against  a  vice-God  of 
any  kind,  nor  would  it  yield  its  scientific  convictions 
to  ecclesiastical  authority.  Some  did  not  hesitate  to 
accuse  the  pope  himself  of  being  a  heretic.  Against 
these  insubordinates  excommunications  began  to  be  ful- 
minated, and  at  length  it  was  demanded  that  certain 
professors  and  teachers  should  be  removed  from  their 
offices,  and  infallibilists  substituted.  With  this  demand 
the  Prussian  Government  declined  to  comply. 

The  Prussian  Government  had  earnestly  desired  to 
remain  on  amicable  terms  with  the  papacy;  it  had  no 
wish  to  enter  on  a  theological  quarrel;  but  gradually 
the  conviction  was  forced  upon  it  that  the  question  was 
not  a  religious  but  a  political  one — whether  the  power 
of  the  state  should  be  used  against  the  state.  A  teacher 
in  a  gymnasium  had  been  excommunicated;  the  gov- 
ernment, on  being  required  to  dismiss  him,  refused. 
The  Church  authorities  denounced  this  as  an  attack 
upon  faith.  The  emperor  sustained  his  minister.  The 
organ  of  the  infallible  party  threatened  the  emperor 
with  the  opposition  of  all  good  Catholics,  and  told  him 
that,  in  a  contention  with  the  pope,  systems  of  govern- 
ment can  and  must  change.  It  was  now  plain  to  every 
one  that  the  question  had  become,  "  Who  is  to  be  mas- 
ter in  the  state,  the  government  or  the  Roman  Church? 
It  is  plainly  impossible  for  men  to  live  under  two  gov- 
ernments, one  of  which  declares  to  be  wrong  what  the 
other  commands.  If  the  government  will  not  submit  to 
the  Roman  Church,  the  two  are  enemies."  A  conflict 
was  thus  forced  upon  Prussia  by  Rome — a  conflict  in 
which  the  latter,  impelled  by  her  antagonism  to  modern 
civilization,  is  clearly  the  aggressor. 

The  government,  now  recognizing  its  antagonist, 
defended  itself  by  abolishing  the  Catholic  department 


ACTION  OP  THE  PRUSSIAN  GOVERNMENT. 

in  the  ministry  of  Public  Worship.  This  was  about 
midsummer,  1871.  In  the  following  November  the  Im- 
perial Parliament  passed  a  law  that  ecclesiastics  abus- 
ing their  office,  to  the  disturbance  of  the  public  peace, 
should  be  criminally  punished.  And,  guided  by  the 
principle  that  the  future  belongs  to  him  to  whom  the 
school  belongs,  a  movement  arose  for  the  purpose  of 
separating  the  schools  from  the  Church. 

The  Jesuit  party  was  extending  and  strengthening 
an  organization  all  over  Germany,  based  on  the  princi- 
ple that  state  legislation  in  ecclesiastical  matters  is  not 
binding.  Here  was  an  act  of  open  insurrection.  Could 
the  government  allow  itself  to  be  intimidated?  The 
Bishop  of  Ermeland  declared  that  he  would  not  obey 
the  laws  of  the  state  if  they  touched  the  Church.  The 
government  stopped  the  payment  of  his  salary;  and, 
perceiving  that  there  could  be  no  peace  so  long  as  the 
Jesuits  were  permitted  to  remain  in  the  country,  their 
expulsion  was  resolved  on,  and  carried  into  effect.  At 
the  close  of  1872  his  Holiness  delivered  an  allocution, 
in  which  he  touched  on  the  "  persecution  of  the  Church 
in  the  German  Empire,"  and  asserted  that  the  Church 
alone  has  a  right  to  fix  the  limits  between  its  domain 
and  that  of  the  state — a  dangerous  and  inadmissible 
principle,  since  under  the  term  morals  the  Church  com- 
prises all  the  relations  of  men  to  each  other,  and  asserts 
that  whatever  does  not  assist  her  oppresses  her.  Here- 
upon, a  few  days  subsequently  (January  9,  1873),  four 
laws  were  brought  forward  by  the  government:  1. 
Regulating  the  means  by  which  a  person  might  sever  his 
connection  with  the  Church;  2.  Restricting  the  Church 
in  the  exercise  of  ecclesiastical  punishments;  3.  Regu- 
lating the  ecclesiastical  power  of  discipline,  forbidding 
bodily  chastisement,  regulating  fines  and  banishments, 


THE  CHURCH  A  POLITICAL  POWER.  341 

granting  the  privilege  of  an  appeal  to  the  Koyal  Court 
of  Justice  for  Ecclesiastical  Affairs,  the  decision  of  which 
is  final;  4.  Ordaining  the  preliminary  education  and 
appointment  of  priests.  They  must  have  had  a  satis- 
factory education,  passed  a  public  examination  con- 
ducted by  the  state,  and  have  a  knowledge  of  philoso- 
phy, history,  and  German  literature.  Institutions  refus- 
ing to  be  superintended  by  the  state  are  to  be  closed. 

These  laws  demonstrate  that  Germany  is  resolved 
that  she  will  no  longer  be  dictated  to  nor  embarrassed 
by  a  few  Italian  noble  families;  that  she  will  be  master 
of  her  own  house.  She  sees  in  the  conflict,  not  an  affair 
of  religion  or  of  conscience,  but  a  struggle  between  the 
sovereignty  of  state  legislation  and  the  sovereignty  of 
the  Church.  She  treats  the  papacy  not  in  the  aspect  of 
a  religious,  but  of  a  political  power,  and  is  resolved 
that  the  declaration  of  the  Prussian  Constitution  shall 
be  maintained,  that  "the  exercise  of  religious  freedom 
must  not  interfere  with  the  duties  of  a  citizen  toward 
the  community  and  the  state." 

With  truth  it  is  affirmed  that  the  papacy  is  admin- 
istered not  cecumenically,  not  as  a  universal  Church,  for 
all  the  nations,  but  for  the  benefit  of  some  Italian  fam- 
ilies. Look  at  its  composition!  It  consists  of  pope, 
cardinal  bishops,  cardinal  deacons,  who  at  the  present 
moment  are  all  Italians;  cardinal  priests,  nearly  all 
Italians;  ministers  and  secretaries  of  the  Sacred  Con- 
gregation in  Rome,  all  Italians.  France  has  not  given  a 
pope  since  the  middle  ages.  It  is  the  same  with  Aus- 
tria, Portugal,  Spain.  In  spite  of  all  attempts  to  change 
this  system  of  exclusion,  to  open  the  dignities  of  the 
Church  to  all  Catholicism,  no  foreigner  can  reach  the 
holy  chair.  It  is  recognized  that  the  Church  is  a  do- 
main given  by  God  to  the  princely  Italian  families. 
24 


342     DUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  EUROPE. 

Of  fifty-five  members  of  the  present  College  of  Cardi- 
nals, forty  are  Italians — that  is,  thirty-two  beyond  their 
proper  share. 

The  stumbling-block  to  the  progress  of  Europe  has 
been  its  dual  system  of  government.  So  long  as  every 
nation  had  two  sovereigns,  a  temporal  one  at  home  and 
a  spiritual  one  in  a  foreign  land — there  being  differ- 
ent temporal  masters  in  different  nations,  but  only  one 
foreign  master  for  all,  the  pontiff  at  Eome — how  was 
it  possible  that  history  should  present  us  with  any  thing 
more  than  a  narrative  of  the  strifes  of  these  rival  powers? 
"Whoever  will  reflect  on  this  state  of  things  will  see  how 
it  is  that  -those  nations  which  have  shaken  off  the  dual 
form  of  government  are  those  which  have  made  the 
greatest  advance.  He  will  discern  what  is  the  cause 
of  the  paralysis  which  has  befallen  France.  On  one 
hand  she  wishes  to  be  the  leader  of  Europe,  on  the  other 
she  clings  to  a  dead  past.  For  the  sake  of  propitiating 
her  ignorant  classes,  she  enters  upon  lines  of  policy 
which  her  intelligence  must  condemn.  So  evenly  bal- 
anced are  the  two  sovereignties  under  which  she  lives, 
that  sometimes  one,  sometimes  the  other,  prevails;  and 
not  unfrequently  the  one  uses  the  other  as  an  engine 
for  the  accomplishment  of  its  ends. 

But  this  dual  system  approaches  its  close.  To  the 
northern  nations,  less  imaginative  and  less  superstitious, 
it  had  long  ago  become  intolerable;  they  rejected  it 
summarily  at  the  epoch  of  the  Reformation,  notwith- 
standing the  protestations  and  pretensions  of  Rome. 
Russia,  happier  than  the  rest,  has  never  acknowledged 
the  influence  of  any  foreign  spiritual  power.  She  gloried 
in  her  attachment  to  the  ancient  Greek  rite,  and  saw  in 
the  papacy  nothing  more  than  a  troublesome  dissenter 
from  the  primitive  faith.  In  America  the  temporal  and 


INTENTIONS  OF  THE  POPE.  343 

the  spiritual  have  been  absolutely  divorced — the  latter 
is  not  permitted  to  have  anything  to  do  with  affairs  of 
state,  though  in  all  other  respects  liberty  is  conceded  to 
it.  The  condition  of  the  New  World  also  satisfies  us 
that  both  forms  of  Christianity,  Catholic  and  Protestant, 
have  lost  their  expansive  power;  neither  can  pass  be- 
yond its  long-established  boundary-line — the  Catholic 
republics  remain  Catholic,  the  Protestant  Protestant. 
And  among  the  latter  the  disposition  to  sectarian  isola- 
tion is  disappearing;  persons  of  different  denominations 
consort  without  hesitation  together.  They  gather  their 
current  opinions  from  newspapers,  not  from  the  Church. 

Pius  IX.,  in  the  movements  we  have  been  consider- 
ing, has  had  two  objects  in  view:  1.  The  more  thorough 
centralization  of  the  papacy,  with  a  spiritual  autocrat  as- 
suming the  prerogatives  of  God  at  its  head;  2.  Control 
over  the  intellectual  development  of  the  nations  profess- 
ing Christianity. 

The  logical  consequence  of  the  former  of  these  is 
political  intervention.  He  insists  that  in  all  cases  the 
temporal  must  subordinate  itself  to  the  spiritual  power; 
all  laws  inconsistent  with  the  interests  of  the  Church 
must  be  repealed.  They  are  not  binding  on  the  faith- 
ful. In  the  preceding  pages  I  have  briefly  related  some 
of  the  complications  that  have  already  occurred  in  the 
attempt  to  maintain  this  policy. 

I  now  come  to  the  consideration  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  papacy  proposes  to  establish  its  intellectual 
control;  how  it  defines  its  relation  to  its  antagonist, 
Science,  and,  seeking  a  restoration  of  the  mediaeval  con- 
dition, opposes  modern  civilization,  and  denounces  mod- 
ern society. 

The  Encyclical  and  Syllabus  present  the  principles 
which  it  was  the  object  of  the  Vatican  Council  to  carry 


344:  THE  SYLLABUS. 

into  practical  effect.  The  Syllabus  stigmatizes  panthe- 
ism, naturalism,  and  absolute  rationalism,  denouncing 
such  opinions  as  that  God  is  the  world;  that  there  is  no 
God  other  than  Nature-;  that  theological  matters  must 
be  treated  in  the  same  manner  as  philosophical  ones; 
that  the  methods  and  principles  by  which  the  old  scho- 
lastic doctors  cultivated  theology  are  no  longer  suitable 
to  the  demands  of  the  age  and  the  progress  of  science; 
that  every  man  is  free  to  embrace  and  profess  the  reli- 
gion he  may  believe  to  be  true,  guided  by  the  light  of 
his  reason;  that  it  appertains  to  the  civil  power  to  de- 
fine what  are  the  rights  and  limits  in  which  the  Church 
may  exercise  authority;  that  the  Church  has  not  the 
right  of  availing  herself  of  force  or  any  direct  or  indi- 
rect temporal  power;  that  the  Church  ought  to  be  sepa- 
rated from  the  state  and  the  state  from  the  Church; 
that  it  is  no  longer  expedient  that  the  Catholic  religion 
shall  be  held  as  the  only  religion  of  the  state,  to  the 
exclusion  of  all  other  modes  of  worship;  that  persons 
coming  to  reside  in  Catholic  countries  have  a  right  to 
the  public  exercise  of  their  own  worship;  that  the  Ro- 
man pontiff  can  and  ought  to  reconcile  himself  to,  and 
agree  with,  the  progress  of  modern  civilization.  The 
Syllabub  claims  the  right  of  the  Church  to  control  public 
schools,  and  denies  the  right  of  the  state  in  that  respect; 
it  claims  the  control  over  marriage  and  divorce. 

Such  of  these  principles  as  the  Council  found  expe- 
dient at  present  to  fonnularize,  were  set  forth  by  it  in 
"The  Dogmatic  Constitution  of  the  Catholic  Faith." 
The  essential  points  of  this  constitution,  more  especially 
as  regards  the  relations  of  religion  to  science,  we  have 
now  to  examine.  It  will  be  understood  that  the  follow- 
ing does  not  present  the  entire  document,  but  only  an 
abstract  of  what  appear  to  be  its  more  important  parts. 


CONSTITUTION  OF  CATHOLIC  FAITH.          345 

This  definition  opens  with  a  severe  review  of  the 
principles  and  consequences  of  the  Protestant  Reforma- 
tion: 

"The  rejection  of  the  divine  authority  of  the  Church 
to  teach,  and  the  subjection  of  all  things  belonging  to 
religion  to  the  judgment  of  each  individual,  have  led  to 
the  production  of  many  sects,  and,  as  these  differed  and 
disputed  with  each  other,  all  belief  in  Christ  was  over- 
thrown in  the  minds  of  not  a  few,  and  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures began  to  be  counted  as  myths  and  fables.  Chris- 
tianity has  been  rejected,  and  the  reign  of  mere  Eeason, 
as  they  call  it,  or  Nature,  substituted;  many  falling  into 
the  abyss  of  pantheism,  materialism,  and  atheism,  and, 
repudiating  the  reasoning  nature  of  man,  and  every  rule 
of  right  and  wrong,  they  are  laboring  to  overthrow  the 
very  foundations  of  human  society.  As  this  impious 
heresy  is  spreading  everywhere,  not  a  few  Catholics 
have  been  inveigled  by  it.  They  have  confounded  hu- 
man science  and  divine  faith. 

"  But  the  Church,  the  Mother  and  Mistress  of  na- 
tions, is  ever  ready  to  strengthen  the  weak,  to  take  to 
her  bosom  those  that  return,  and  carry  them  on  to  better 
things.  And,  now  the  bishops  of  the  whole  world  being 
gathered  together  in  this  (Ecumenical  Council;  and  the 
Holy  Ghost  sitting  therein,  and  judging  with  us,  we 
have  determined  to  declare  from  this  chair  of  St.  Peter 
the  saving  doctrine  of  Christ,  and  proscribe  and  con- 
demn the  opposing  errors. 

"  OF  GOD,  THE  CREATOR  or  ALL  THINGS. — The  Holy 
Catholic  Apostolic  Eoman  Church  believes  that  there 
is  one  true  and  living  God,  Creator  and  Lord  of  Heaven 
and  Earth,  Almighty,  Eternal,  Immense,  Incomprehen- 
sible, Infinite  in  understanding  and  will,  and  in  all  per- 
fection. He  is  distinct  from  the  world.  Of  his  own 


346         CONSTITUTION  OP  CATHOLIC  FAITH. 

most  free  counsel  he  made  alike  out  of  nothing  two 
created  creatures,  a  spiritual  and  a  temporal,  angelic  and 
earthly.  Afterward  he  made  the  human  nature,  com- 
posed of  both.  Moreover,  God  by  his  providence  pro- 
tec  ts  and  governs  all  things,  reaching  from  end  to  end 
mightily,  and  ordering  all  things  harmoniously.  Every 
tiling  is  open  to  his  eyes,  even  things  that  come  to  pass 
by  the  free  action  of  his  creatures." 

"  OF  REVELATION. — The  Holy  Mother  Church  holds 
that  God  can  be  known  with  certainty  by  the  natural 
light  of  human  reason,  but  that  it  has  also  pleased  him 
to  reveal  himself  and  the  eternal  decrees  of  his  will  in 
a  supernatural  way.  This  supernatural  revelation,  as 
declared  by  the  Holy  Council  of  Trent,  is  contained  in 
the  books  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  as  enumer- 
ated in  the  decrees  of  that  Council,  and  as  are  to  be  had 
in  the  old  Vulgate  Latin  edition.  These  are  sacred  be- 
cause they  were  written  under  the  inspiration  of  the 
Holy  Ghost.  They  have  God  for  their  author,  and  as 
such  have  been  delivered  to  the  Church. 

"  And,  in  order  to  restrain  restless  spirits,  who  may 
give  erroneous  explanations,  it  is  decreed — renewing  the 
decision  of  the  Council  of  Trent — that  no  one  may 
interpret  the  sacred  Scriptures  contrary  to  the  sense  in 
which  they  are  interpreted  by  Holy  Mother  Church,  to 
whom  such  interpretation  belongs." 

"  OF  FAITH. — Inasmuch  as  man  depends  on  God  as 
his  Lord,  and  created  reason  is  wholly  subject  to  un- 
created truth,  he  is  bound  when  God  makes  a  revelation 
to  obey  it  by  faith.  This  faith  is  a  supernatural  vir- 
tue, and  the  beginning  of  man's  salvation  who  believes 
revealed  things  to  be  true,  not  for  their  intrinsic  truth 
as  seen  by  the  natural  light  of  reason,  but  for  the  au- 
thority of  God  in  revealing  them.  But,  nevertheless, 


CONSTITUTION  OF  CATHOLIC  FAITH.          347 

that  faith  might  be  agreeable  to  reason,  God  willed  to 
join  miracles  and  prophecies,  which,  showing  forth  his 
omnipotence  and  knowledge,  are  proofs  suited  to  the 
understanding  of  all.  Such  we  have  in  Moses  and  the 
prophets,  and  above  all  in  Christ.  Now,  all  those  things 
are  to  be  believed  which  are  written  in  the  word  of  God, 
or  handed  down  by  tradition,  which  the  Church  by  her 
teaching  has  proposed  for  belief. 

"  No  one  can  be  justified  without  this  faith,  nor  shall 
any  one,  unless  he  persevere  therein  to  the  end,  at- 
tain everlasting  life.  Hence  God,  through  his  only-be- 
gotten Son,  has  established  the  Church  as  the  guardian 
and  teacher  of  his  revealed  word.  For  only  to  the 
Catholic  Church  do  all  those  signs  belong  which  make 
evident  the  credibility  of  the  Christian  faith.  Nay, 
more,  the  very  Church  herself,  in  view  of  her  wonder- 
ful propagation,  her  eminent  holiness,  her  exhaustless 
fruitfulness  in  all  that  is  good,  her  Catholic  unity,  her 
unshaken  stability,  offers  a  great  and  evident  claim  to 
belief,  and  an  undeniable  proof  of  her  divine  mission. 
Thus  the  Church  shows  to  her  children  that  the  faith 
they  hold  rests  on  a  most  solid  foundation.  Wherefore, 
totally  unlike  is  the  condition  of  those  who,  by  the 
heavenly  gift  of  faith,  have  embraced  the  Catholic 
truth,  and  of  those  who,  led  by  human  opinions,  are  fol- 
lowing a  false  religion." 

"  OF  FAITH  AND  KEASON. — Moreover,  the  Catholic 
Church  has  ever  held  and  now  holds  that  there  exists  a 
twofold  order  of  knowledge,  each  of  which  is  distinct 
from  the  other,  both  as  to  its  principle  and  its  object. 
As  to  its  principle,  because  in  the  one  we  know  by  natu- 
ral reason,  in  the  other  by  divine  faith;  as  to  the  ob- 
ject, because,  besides  those  things  which  our  natural  rea- 
son can  attain,  there  are  proposed  to  our  belief  mysteries 


348         CONSTITUTION  OF  CATHOLIC  FAITH. 

hidden  in  God,  which,  unless  by  him  revealed,  cannot 
come  to  our  knowledge. 

"  Reason,  indeed,  enlightened  by  faith,  and  seeking, 
with  diligence  and  godly  sobriety,  may,  by  God's  gift, 
come  to  some  understanding,  limited  in  degree,  but 
most  wholesome  in  its  effects,  of  mysteries,  both  from 
the  analogy  of  things  which  are  naturally  known  and 
from  the  connection  of  the  mysteries  themselves  with 
one  another  and  with  man's  last  end.  But  never  can 
reason  be  rendered  capable  of  thoroughly  understanding 
mysteries  as  it  does  those  truths  which  form  its  prop- 
er object.  For  God's  mysteries,  in  their  very  nature, 
so  far  surpass  the  reach  of  created  intellect,  that,  even 
when  taught  by  revelation  and  received  by  faith,  they 
remain  covered  by  faith  itself,  as  by  a  veil,  and  shroud- 
ed, as  it  were,  in  darkness  as  long  as  in  this  mortal  life. 

But,  although  faith  be  above  reason,  there  never 
can  be  a  real  disagreement  between  them,  since  the  same 
God  who  reveals  mysteries  and  infuses  faith  has  given 
man's  soul  the  light  of  reason,  and  God  cannot  deny 
himself,  nor  can  one  truth  ever  contradict  another. 
Wherefore  the  empty  shadow  of  such  contradiction 
arises  chiefly  from  this, that  either  the  doctrines  of  faith 
are  not  understood  and  set  forth  as  the  Church  really 
holds  them,  or  that  the  vain  devices  and  opinions  of 
men  are  mistaken  for  the  dictates  of  reason.  We  there- 
fore pronounce  false  every  assertion  which  is  contrary 
to  the  enlightened  truth  of  faith.  Moreover,  the 
Church,  which,  together  with  her  apostolic  office  of 
teaching,  is  charged  also  with  the  guardianship  of  the 
deposits  of  faith,  holds  likewise  from  God  the  right 
and  the  duty  to  condemn  '  knowledge,  falsely  so  called/ 
'  lest  any  man  be  cheated  by  philosophy  and  vain  de- 
ceit/ Hence  all  the  Christian  faithful  are  not  only  for- 


CONSTITUTION  OP  CATHOLIC  FAITH.          349 

bidden  to  defend,  as  legitimate  conclusions  of  science, 
those  opinions  which  are  known  to  be  contrary  to  the 
doctrine  of  faith,  especially  when  condemned  by  the 
Church,  but  are  rather  absolutely  bound  to  hold  them 
for  errors  wearing  the  deceitful  appearance  of  truth. 

"  Not  only  is  it  impossible  for  faith  and  reason  ever 
to  contradict  each  other,  but  they  rather  afford  each 
other  mutual  assistance.  For  right  reason  establishes 
the  foundation  of  faith,  and,  by  the  aid  of  its  light, 
cultivates  the  science  of  divine  things;  and  faith,  on 
the  other  hand,  frees  and  preserves  reason  from  errors, 
and  enriches  it  with  knowledge  of  many  kinds.  So  far, 
then,  is  the  Church  from  opposing  the  culture  of  hu- 
man arts  and  sciences,  that  she  rather  aids  and  pro- 
motes it  in  many  ways.  For  she  is  not  ignorant  of  nor 
does  she  despise  the  advantages  which  flow  from  them 
to  the  life  of  man;  on  the  contrary,  she  acknowledges 
that,  as  they  sprang  from  God,  the  Lord  of  knowledge, 
so,  if  they  be  rightly  pursued,  they  will,  through  the 
aid  of  his  grace,  lead  to  God.  Nor  does  she  forbid 
any  of  those  sciences  the  use  of  its  own  principles  and 
its  own  method  within  its  own  proper  sphere;  but,  rec- 
ognizing this  reasonable  freedom,  she  takes  care  that 
they  may  not,  by  contradicting  God's  teaching,  fall  into 
errors,  or,  overstepping  the  due  limits,  invade  or  throw 
into  confusion  the  domain  of  faith. 

"  For  the  doctrine  of  faith  revealed  by  God  has  not 
been  proposed,  like  some  philosophical  discovery,  to  be 
made  perfect  by  human  ingenuity,  but  it  has  been  de- 
livered to  the  spouse  of  Christ  as  a  divine  deposit,  to 
be  faithfully  guarded  and  unerringly  set  forth.  Hence, 
all  tenets  of  holy  faith  are  to  be  explained  always  ac- 
cording to  the  sense  and  meaning  of  the  Church;  nor 
is  it  ever  lawful  to  depart  therefrom  under  pretense 


350  T"K  VATICAN  ANATHEMAS. 

or  color  of  a  more  enlightened  explanation.  Therefore, 
as  generations  and  centuries  roll  on,  let  the  understand- 
ing, knowledge,  and  wisdom  of  each  and  every  one,  of 
individuals  and  of  the  whole  Church,  grow  apace  and 
increase  exceedingly,  yet  only  in  its  kind;  that  is  to  say, 
retaining  pure  and  inviolate  the  sense  and  meaning  and 
belief  of  the  same  doctrine." 

Among  other  canons  the  following  were  promulgated: 

"  Let  him  be  anathema — 

"  Who  denies  the  one  true  God,  Creator  and  Lord 
of  all  things,  visible  and  invisible. 

"  Who  unblushingly  affirms  that,  besides  matter, 
nothing  else  exists. 

"  Who  says  that  the  substance  or  essence  of  God, 
and  of  all  things,  is  one  and  the  same. 

"  Who  says  that  finite  things,  both  corporeal  and 
spiritual,  or  at  least  spiritual  things,  are  emanations  of 
the  divine  substance;  or  that  the  divine  essence,  by 
manifestation  or  development  of  itself,  becomes  all 
things. 

"  Who  does  not  acknowledge  that  the  world  and  all 
things  which  it  contains  were  produced  by  God  out  of 
nothing. 

"  Who  shall  say  that  man  can  and  ought  to,  of  his 
own  efforts,  by  means  of  constant  progress,  arrive,  at 
last,  at  the  possession  of  all  truth  and  goodness. 

"  Who  shall  refuse  to  receive,  for  sacred  and  canoni- 
cal, the  books  of  Holy  Scripture  in  their  integrity,  with 
all  their  parts,  according  as  they  were  enumerated  by 
the  holy  Council  of  Trent,  or  shall  deny  that  they  are 
inspired  by  God. 

"  Who  shall  say  that  human  reason  is  in  such  wise 
independent,  that  faith  cannot  be  demanded  of  it  by 
God. 


THE  VATICAN  ANATHEMAS.  351 

"  Who  shall  say  that  divine  revelation  cannot  be  ren- 
dered credible  by  external  evidences. 

"  Who  shall  say  that  no  miracles  can  be  wrought,  or 
that  they  can  never  be  known  with  certainty,  and  that 
the  divine  origin  of  Christianity  cannot  be  proved,  by 
them. 

"Who  shall  say  that  divine  revelation  includes  no 
mysteries,  but  that  all  the  dogmas  of  faith  may  be  un- 
derstood and  demonstrated  by  reason  duly  cultivated. 

"  Who  shall  say  that  human  sciences  ought  to  be 
pursued  in  such  a  spirit  of  freedom  that  one  may  be  al- 
lowed to  hold  as  true  their  assertions,  even  when  op- 
posed to  revealed  doctrine. 

"  Who  shall  say  that  it  may  at  any  time  come  to  pass, 
in  the  progress  of  science,  that  the  doctrines  set  forth 
by  the  Church  must  be  taken  in  another  sense  than  that 
in  which  the  Church  has  ever  received  and  yet  receives 
them." 

The  extraordinary  and,  indeed,  it  may  be  said,  arro- 
gant assumptions  contained  in  these  decisions  were  far 
from  being  received  with  satisfaction  by  educated  Cath- 
olics. On  the  part  of  the  German  universities  there 
was  resistance;  and  when,  at  the  close  of  the  year, 
the  decrees  of  the  Vatican  Council  were  generally  ac- 
quiesced in,  it  was  not  through  conviction  of  their 
truth,  but  through  a  disciplinary  sense  of  obedience. 

By  many  of  the  most  pious  Catholics  the  entire 
movement  and  the  results  to  which  it  had  led  were 
looked  upon  with  the  sincerest  sorrow.  Pere  Hyacinthe, 
in  a  letter  to  the  superior  of  his  order,  says:  "  I  pro- 
test against  the  divorce,  as  impious  as  it  is  insensate, 
sought  to  be  effected  between  the  Church,  which  is  our 
eternal  mother,  and  the  society  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 


352  THE   EVANGELICAL  ALL1ANCK. 

tury,  of  which  we  are  the  temporal  children,  and  toward 
which  we  have  also  duties  and  regards.  It  is  my 
most  profound  conviction  that  if  France  in  particular, 
and  the  Latin  race  in  general,  are  given  up  to  social, 
moral,  and  religious  anarchy,  the  principal  cause  un- 
doubtedly is  not  Catholicism  itself,  but  the  manner  in 
which  Catholicism  has  for  a  long  time  been  understood 
and  practised." 

Notwithstanding  his  infallibility,  which  implies  om- 
niscience, his  Holiness  did  not  foresee  the  issue  of  the 
Franco-Prussian  War.  Had  the  prophetical  talent  been 
vouchsafed  to  him,  he  would  have  detected  the  inoppor- 
tuneness  of  the  acts  of  his  Council.  His  request  to  the 
King  of  Prussia  for  military  aid  to  support  his  tempo- 
ral power  was  denied.  The  excommunicated  King  of 
Italy,  as  we  have  seen,  took  possession  of  Rome.  A 
bitter  papal  encyclical,  strangely  contrasting  with  the 
courteous  politeness  of  modern  state-papers,  was  issued, 
November  1,  1870,  denouncing  the  acts  of  the  Pied- 
montese  court,  "  which  had  followed  the  counsel  of  the 
sects  of  perdition."  In  this  his  Holiness  declares  that 
he  is  in  captivity,  and  that  he  will  have  no  agreement 
with  Belial.  He  pronounces  the  greater  excommunica- 
tion, with  censures  and  penalties,  against  his  antago- 
nists, and  prays  for  "  the  intercession  of  the  immaculate 
Virgin  Mary,  mother  of  God,  and  that  of  the  blessed 
apostles  Peter  and  Paul. 

Of  the  various  Protestant  denominations,  several 
had  associated  themselves,  for  the  purposes  of  consulta- 
tion, under  the  designation  of  the  Evangelical  Alliance. 
Their  last  meeting  was  held  in  New  York,  in  the  au- 
tumn of  1873.  Though  in  this  meeting  were  gathered 
together  many  pious  representatives  of  the  Reformed 


THE  EVANGELICAL  ALLIANCE.  353 

Churches,  European  and  American,  it  had  not  the  pres- 
tige nor  the  authority  of  the  Great  Council  that  had  just 
previously  closed  its  sessions  in  St.  Peter's,  at  Eome.  It 
could  not  appeal  to  an  unbroken  ancestry  of  far  more 
than  a  thousand  years;  it  could  not  speak  with  the  au- 
thority of  an  equal  and,  indeed,  of  a  superior  to  emper- 
ors and  kings.  While  profound  intelligence  and  a 
statesmanlike,  worldly  wisdom  gleamed  in  every  thing 
that  the  Vatican  Council  had  done,  the  Evangelical  Alli- 
ance met  without  a  clear  and  precise  view  of  its  objects, 
without  any  definitely-marked  intentions.  Its  wish  was 
to  draw  into  closer  union  the  various  Protestant  Church- 
es, but  it  had  no  well-grounded  hope  of  accomplishing 
.  that  desirable  result.  It  illustrated  the  necessary  work- 
ing of  the  principle  on  which  those  Churches  originated. 
They  were  founded  on  dissent  and  exist  by  separation. 

Yet  in  the  action  of  the  Evangelical  Alliance  may 
be  discerned  certain  very  impressive  facts.  It  averted 
its  eyes  from  its  'ancient  antagonist — that  antagonist 
which  had  so  recently  loaded  the  Eeformation  with 
contumely  and  denunciation — it  fastened  them,  as  the 
Vatican  Council  had  done,  on  Science.  Under  that 
dreaded  name  there  stood  before  it  what  seemed  to  be 
a  spectre  of  uncertain  form,  of  hourly-dilating  propor- 
tions, of  threatening  aspect.  Sometimes  the  Alliance 
addressed  this  stupendous  apparition  in  words  of  cour- 
tesy, sometimes  in  tones  of  denunciation. 

The  Alliance  failed  to  perceive  that  modern  Science 
is  the  legitimate  sister — indeed,  it  is  the  twin-sister — 
of  the  Eeformation.  They  were  begotten  together  and 
were  born  together.  It  failed  to  perceive  that,  though 
there  is  an  impossiblity  of  bringing  into  coalition  the 
many  conflicting  sects,  they  may  all  find  in  science  a 
point  of  connection;  and  that  not  a  distrustful  attitude 


354    THE  VATICAN  CONSTITUTION  CRITICISED. 

toward  it,  but  a  cordial  union  with  it,  is  their  true 
policy. 

It  remains  now  to  offer  some  reflections  on  this 
"  Constitution  of  the  Catholic  Faith,"  as  defined  by  the 
Vatican  Council. 

For  objects  to  present  themselves  under  identical  re- 
lations to  different  persons,  they  must  be  seen  from  the 
same  point  of  view.  In  the  instance  we  are  now  con- 
sidering, the  religious  man  has  his  own  especial  station; 
the  scientific  man  another,  a  very  different  one.  It  is 
not  for  either  to  demand  that  his  coobserver  shall  admit 
that  the  panorama  of  facts  spread  before  them  is  actu- 
ally such  as  it  appears  to  him  to  be. 

The  Dogmatic  Constitution  insists  on  the  admission 
of  this  postulate,  that  the  Roman  Church  acts  under  a 
divine  commission,  specially  and  exclusively  delivered 
to  it.  In  virtue  of  that  great  authority,  it  requires  of 
all  men  the  surrender  of  their  intellectual  convictions, 
and  of  all  nations  the  subordination  of  their  civil  power. 

But  a  claim  so  imposing  must  be  substantiated  by 
the  most  decisive  and  unimpeachable  credentials;  proofs, 
not  only  of  an  implied  and  indirect  kind,  but  clear,  em- 
phatic, and  to  the  point;  proofs  that  it  would  be  impos- 
sible to  call  in  question. 

The  Church,  however,  declares  that  she  will  not 
submit  her  claim  to  the  arbitrament  of  human  reason; 
she  demands  that  it  shall  be  at  once  conceded  as  an 
article  of  faith. 

If  this  be  admitted,  all  her  requirements  must  neces- 
sarily be  assented  to,  no  matter  how  exorbitant  they 
may  be. 

With  strange  inconsistency  the  Dogmatic  Constitu- 
tion deprecates  reason,  affirming  that  it  cannot  deter- 


THE  VATICAN  CONSTITUTION  CRITICISED.     355 

mine  the  points  under  consideration,  and  yet  submits  to 
it  arguments  for  adjudication.  In  truth,  it  might  be 
said  that  the  whole  composition  is  a  passionate  plea  to 
Eeason  to  stultify  itself  in  favor  of  Eoman  Christianity. 

With  points  of  view  so  widely  asunder,  it  is  impos- 
sible that  Eeligion  and  Science  should  accord  in  their 
representation  of  things.  Nor  can  any  conclusion  in 
common  be  reached,  except  by  an  appeal  to  Reason  as  a 
supreme  and  final  judge. 

There  are  many  religions  in  the  world,  some  of  them 
of  more  venerable  antiquity,  some  having  far  more  nu- 
merous adherents,  than  the  Roman.  How  can  a  selec- 
tion be  made  among  them,  except  by  such  an  appeal  to 
Reason?  Religion  and  Science  must  both  submit  their 
claims  and  their  dissensions  to  its  arbitrament. 

Against  this  the  Vatican  Council  protests.  It  exalts 
faith  to  a  superiority  over  reason;  it  says  that  they  con- 
stitute two  separate  orders  of  knowledge,  having  respec- 
tively for  their  objects  mysteries  and  facts.  Faith  deals 
with  mysteries,  reason  with  facts.  Asserting  the  domi- 
nating superiority  of  faith,  it  tries  to  satisfy  the  reluc- 
tant mind  with  miracles  and  prophecies. 

On  the  other  hand,  Science  turns  away  from  the 
incomprehensible,  and  rests  herself  on  the  maxim  of 
Wiclif :  "  God  forceth  not  a  man  to  believe  that  which 
he  cannot  understand."  In  the  absence  of  an  exhibi- 
tion of  satisfactory  credentials  on  the  part  of  her  oppo- 
nent, she  considers  whether  there  be  in  the  history  of 
the  papacy,  and  in  the  biography  of  the  popes,  any 
thing  that  can  adequately  sustain  a  divine  commission, 
any  thing  that  can  justify  pontifical  infallibility,  or  ex- 
tort that  unhesitating  obedience  which  is  due  to  the 
vice-God. 

One  of  the  most  striking  and  yet  contradictory  feat- 


356    THE  VATICAN  CONSTITUTION  CRITICISED. 

ures  of  the  Dogmatic  Constitution  is,  the  reluctant  hom- 
age it  pays  to  the  intelligence  of  man.  It  presents  a 
definition  of  the  philosophical  basis  of  Catholicism,  but 
it  veils  from  view  the  repulsive  features  of  the  vulgar 
faith.  It  sets  forth  the  attributes  of  God,  the  Creator 
of  all  things,  in  words  fitly  designating  its  sublime  con- 
ception, but  it  abstains  from  affirming  that  this  most 
awful  and  eternal  Being  was  born  of  an  earthly  mother, 
the  wife  of  a  Jewish  carpenter,  who  has  since  become 
the  queen  of  heaven.  The  God  it  depicts  is  not  the 
God  of  the  middle  ages,  seated  on  his  golden  throne, 
surrounded  by  choirs  of  angels,  but  the  God  of  Philoso- 
phy. The  Constitution  has  nothing  to  say  about  the 
Trinity,  nothing  of  the  worship  due  to  the  Virgin — on 
the  contrary,  that  is  by  implication  sternly  condemned; 
nothing  about  transubstantiation,  or  the  making  of  the 
flesh  and  blood  of  God  by  the  priest;  nothing  of  the 
invocation  of  the  saints.  It  bears  on  its  face  subordi- 
nation to  the  thought  of  the  age,  the  impress  of  the  in- 
tellectual progress  of  man. 

Such  being  the  exposition  rendered  to  us  respecting 
the  attributes  of  God,  it  next  instructs  us  as  to  his  mode 
of  government  of  the  world.  The  Church  asserts  that 
she  possesses  a  supernatural  control  over  all  material 
and  moral  events.  The  priesthood,  in  its  various  grades, 
can  determine  issues  of  the  future,  either  by  the  exercise 
of  its  inherent  attributes,  or  by  its  influential  invoca- 
tion of  the  celestial  powers.  To  the  sovereign  pontiff 
it  has  been  given  to  bind  or  loose  at  his  pleasure.  It  is 
unlawful  to  appeal  from  his  judgment  to  an  (Ecumeni- 
cal Council,  as  if  to  an  earthly  arbiter  superior  to  him. 
Powers  such  as  these  are  consistent  with  arbitrary  rule, 
but  they  are  inconsistent  with  the  government  of  the 
world  by  immutable  law.  Hence  the  Dogmatic  Consti- 


THE  PASSAGE  OF   EUROPE  TO  LLAMAISM.    357 

tution  plants  itself  firmly  in  behalf  of  incessant  provi- 
dential interventions;  it  will  not  for  a  moment  admit 
that  in  natural  things  there  is  an  irresistible  sequence 
of  events,  or  in  the  affairs  of  men  an  unavoidable  course 
of  acts. 

But  has  not  the  order  of  civilization  in  all  parts  of 
the  world  been  the  same?  Does  not  the  growth  of  so- 
ciety resemble  individual  growth?  Do  not  both  exhibit 
to  us  phases  of  youth,  of  maturity,  of  decrepitude?  To 
a  person  who  has  carefully  considered  the  progressive 
civilization  of  groups  of  men  in  regions  of  the  earth  far 
apart,  who  has  observed  the  identical  forms  under  which 
that  advancing  civilisation  has  manifested  itself,  is  it 
not  clear  that  the  procedure  is  determined  by  law? 
The  religious  ideas  of  the  Incas  of  Peru  and  the  em- 
perors of  Mexico,  and  the  ceremonials  of  their  court-life, 
were  the  same  as  those  in  Europe — the  same  as  those  in 
Asia.  The  current  of  thought  had  been  the  same.  A 
swarm  of  bees  carried  to  some  distant  land  will  build 
its  combs  and  regulate  its  social  institutions  as  other 
unknown  swarms  would  do,  and  so  with  separated  and 
disconnected  swarms  of  men.  So  invariable  is  this  se- 
quence of  thought  and  act,  that  there  are  philosophers 
who,  transferring  the  past  example  offered  by  Asiatic 
history  to  the  case  of  Europe,  would  not  hesitate  to 
sustain  the  proposition — -given  a  bishop  of  Rome  and 
some  centuries,  and  you  will  have  an  infallible  pope: 
given  an  infallible  pope  and  a  little  more  time,  and  you 
will  have  Llamaism — Llamaism  to  which  Asia  has  long 
ago  attained. 

As  to  the  origin  of  corporeal  and  spiritual  things, 

the  Dogmatic  Constitution  adds  a  solemn  emphasis  to  its 

declarations,  by  anathematizing  all  those  who  hold  the 

doctrine  of  emanation,  or  who  believe  that  visible  Xature 

25 


358    THE  VATICAN  CONSTITUTION  CRITICISED. 

is  only  a  manifestation  of  the  Divine  Essence.  In  this 
its  authors  had  a  task  of  no  ordinary  difficulty  before 
them.  They  must  encounter  those  formidable  ideas, 
whether  old  or  new,  which  in  our  times  are  so  strongly 
forcing  themselves  on  thoughtful  men.  The  doctrine 
of  the  conservation  and  correlation  of  Force  yields  as  its 
logical  issue  the  time-worn  Oriental  emanation  theory; 
the  doctrines  of  Evolution  and  Development  strike  at 
that  of  successive  creative  acts.  The  former  rests  on 
the  fundamental  principle  that  the  quantity  of  force  in 
the  universe  is  invariable.  Though  that  quantity  can 
neither  be  increased  nor  diminished,  the  forms  under 
which  Force  expresses  itself  may  be  transmuted  into 
each  other.  As  yet  this  doctrine  has  not  received  com- 
plete scientific  demonstration,  but  so  numerous  and  so 
cogent  are  the  arguments  adduced  in  its  behalf,  that  it 
stands  in  an  imposing,  almost  in  an  authoritative  atti- 
tude. Now,  the  Asiatic  theory  of  emanation  and  ab- 
sorption is  seen  to  be  in  harmony  with  this  grand  idea. 
It  does  not  hold  that,  at  the  conception  of  a  human  be- 
ing, a  soul  is  created  by  God  out  of  nothing  and  given 
to  it,  but  that  a  portion  of  the  already  existing,  the 
divine,  the  universal  intelligence,  is  imparted,  and,  when 
life  is  over,  this  returns  to  and  is  absorbed  in  the  gen- 
eral source  from  which  it  originally  came.  The  authors 
of  the  Constitution  forbid  these  ideas  to  be  held,  under 
pain  of  eternal  punishment. 

In  like  manner  they  dispose  of  the  doctrines  of 
Evolution  and  Development,  bluntly  insisting  that  the 
Church  believes  in  distinct  creative  acts.  The  doctrine 
that  every  living  form  is  derived  from  some  preced- 
ing form  is  scientifically  in  a  much  more  advanced  po- 
sition than  that  concerning  Force,  and  probably  may 
be  considered  as  established,  whatever  may  become  of 


THE  VATICAN  CONSTITUTION  CRITICISED.     359 

the  additions  with  which  it  has  recently  been  over- 
laid. 

In  her  condemnation  of  the  Reformation  the  Church 
carries  into  effect  her  ideas  of  the  subordination  of 
reason  to  faith.  In  her  eyes  the  Reformation  is  an  im- 
pious heresy,  leading  to  the  abyss  of  pantheism,  materi- 
alism, and  atheism,  and  tending  to  overthrow  the  very 
foundations  of  human  society.  She  therefore  would 
restrain  those  "  restless  spirits  "  who,  following  Luther, 
have  upheld  the  "  right  of  every  man  to  interpret  the 
Scriptures  for  himself."  She  asserts  that  it  is  a  wicked 
error  to  admit  Protestants  to  equal  political  privileges 
with  Catholics,  and  that  to  coerce  them  and  suppress 
them  is  a  sacred  duty;  that  it  is  abominable  to  permit 
them  to  establish  educational  institutions.  Gregory 
XVI.  denounced  freedom  of  conscience  as  an  insane 
folly,  and  the  freedom  of  the  press  a  pestilent  error, 
which  cannot  be  sufficiently  detested. 

But  how  is  it  possible  to  recognize  an  inspired  and 
infallible  oracle  on  the  Tiber,  when  it  is  remembered 
that  again  and  again  successive  popes  have  contradicted 
each  other;  that  popes  have  denounced  councils,  and 
councils  have  denounced  popes;  that  the  Bible  of  Sixtus 
V.  had  so  many  admitted  errors — nearly  two  thousand 
: — that  its  own  authors  had  to  recall  it?  How  is  it  pos- 
sible for  the  children  of  the  Church  to  regard  as  "  de- 
lusive errors  "  the  globular  form  of  the  earth,  her  posi- 
tion as  a  planet  in  the  solar  system,  her  rotation  on  her 
axis,  her  movement  round  the  sun?  How  can  they  deny 
that  there  are  antipodes,  and  other  worlds  than  ours? 
How  can  they  believe  that  the  world  was  made  out  of 
nothing,  completed  in  a  week,  finished  just  as  we  see  it 
now;  that  it  has  undergone  no  change,  but  that  its 
parts  have  worked  so  indifferently  as  to  require  incest 
Rant  interventions? 


360  THE  ERRORS  OP  ECCLESIASTICISM. 

When  Science  is  thus  commanded  to  surrender  her 
intellectual  convictions,  may  she  not  ask  the  ecclesiastic 
to  remember  the  past?  The  contest  respecting  the  fig- 
ure of  the  earth,  and  the  location  of  heaven  and  hell, 
ended  adversely  to  him.  He  affirmed  that  the  earth  is  an 
extended  plane,  and  that  the  sky  is  a  firmament,  the 
floor  of  heaven,  through  which  again  and  again  persons 
have  been  seen  to  ascend.  The  globular  form  demon- 
strated beyond  any  possibility  of  contradiction  by  astro- 
nomical facts,  and  by  the  voyage  of  Magellan's  ship,  he 
then  maintained  that  it  is  the  central  body  of  the  uni- 
verse, all  others  being  in  subordination  to  it,  and  it  the 
grajid  object  of  God's  regard.  Forced  from  this  posi- 
tion, he  next  affirmed  that  it  is  motionless,  the  sun  and 
the  stars  actually  revolving,  as  they  apparently  do, 
around  it.  The  invention  of  the  telescope  proved  that 
here  again  he  was  in  error.  Then  he  maintained  that  all 
the  motions  of  the  solar  system  are  regulated  by  provi- 
dential intervention;  the  "  Principia  "  of  Newton  dem- 
onstrated that  they  are  due  to  irresistible  law.  He  then 
affirmed  that  the  earth  and  all  the  celestial  bodies  were 
created  about  six  thousand  years  ago,  and  that  in  six 
days  the  order  of  Xature  was  settled,  and  plants  and 
animals  in  their  various  tribes  introduced.  Constrained 
by  the  accumulating  mass  of  adverse  evidence,  he  en- 
larged his  days  into  periods  of  indefinite  length — only, 
however,  to  find  that  even  this  device  was  inadequate. 
The  six  ages,  with  their  six  special  creations,  could  no 
longer  be  maintained,  when  it  was  discovered  that  spe- 
cies, slowly  emerged  in  one  age,  reached  a  culmination 
in  a  second,  and  gradually  died  out  in  a  third:  this  over- 
lapping from  age  to  age  would  not  only  have  demanded 
creations,  but  re-creations  also.  He  affirmed  that  there 
had  been  a  deluge,  which  covered  the  whole  earth  above 


THE  ERRORS  OF  ECCLESIASTICISM.  361 

the  tops  of  the  highest  mountains,  and  that  the  waters 
of  this  flood  were  removed  by  a  wind.  Correct  ideas  re- 
specting the  dimensions  of  the  atmosphere,  and  of  the 
sea,  and  of  the  operation  of  evaporation,  proved  how 
untenable  these  statements  are.  Of  the  progenitors  of 
the  human  race,  he  declared  that  they  had  come  from 
their  Maker's  hand  perfect,  both  in  body  and  mind,  and 
had  subsequently  experienced  a  fall.  He  is  now  consid- 
ering how  best  to  dispose  of  the  evidence  continually 
accumulating  respecting  the  savage  condition  of  prehis- 
toric man. 

Is  it  at  all  surprising  that  the  number  of  those  who 
hold  the  opinions  of  the  Church  in  light  esteem  should 
so  rapidly  increase?  How  can  that  be  received  as  a 
trustworthy  guide  in  the  invisible,  which  falls  into  so 
many  errors  in  the  visible?  How  can  that  give  confi- 
dence in  the  moral,  the  spiritual,  which  has  so  signally 
failed  in  the  physical?  It  is  not  possible  to  dispose  of 
these  conflicting  facts  as  "  empty  shadows,"  "  vain  de- 
vices," "  fictions  coming  from  knowledge  falsely  so 
called,"  "  errors  wearing  the  deceitful  appearance  of 
truth,"  as  the  Church  stigmatizes  them/  Cn  the  con- 
trary, they  are  stern  witnesses,  bearing  emphatic  and 
unimpeachable  testimony  against  the  ecclesiastical  claim 
to  infallibility,  and  fastening  a  conviction  of  ignorance 
and  blindness  upon  her. 

Convicted  of  so  many  errors,  the  papacy  makes  no 
attempt  at  explanation.  It  ignores  the  whole  matter. 
Nay,  more,  relying  on  the  efficacy  of  audacity,  though 
confronted  by  these  facts,  it  lays  claim  to  infallibility. 

But,  to  the  pontiff,  no  other  rights  can  be  conceded 
than  those  he  can  establish  at  the  bar  of  Eeason.  He 
cannot  claim  infallibility  in  religious  affairs,  and  de- 
cline it  in  scientific.  Infallibility  embraces  all  things. 


362  SEPARATION  OF  UATI I  n  I .  I  r  I SM  AND  CIV  I L1ZATION. 

It  implies  omniscience.  If  it  holds  good  for  theology,  it 
neees.-urily  hokls  good  for  science.  How  is  it  possible 
to  cotfrdinate  the  infallibility  of  the  papacy  with  the 
well-known  errors  into  which  it  has  fallen  r 

Does  it  not,  then,  become  needful  to  reject  the  claim 
of  the  papacy  to  the  employment  of  coercion  in  the 
maintenance  of  its  opinions;  to  repudiate  utterly  the 
declaration  that  "  the  Inquisition  is  an  urgent  necessity 
•in  view  of  the  unbelief  of  the  present  age,"  and  in  the 
name  of  human  nature  to  protest  loudly  against  the  fe- 
rocity and  terrorism  of  that  institution?  Has  not  con- 
science inalienable  rights? 

An  impassable  and  hourly-widening  gulf  intervenes 
between  Catholicism  and  the  spirit  of  the  age.  Catholi- 
cism insists  that  blind  faith  is  superior  to  reason;  that 
mysteries  are  of  more  importance  than  facts.  She  claims 
to  be  the  sole  interpreter  of  Nature  and  revelation,  the 
supreme  arbiter  of  knowledge;  she  summarily  rejects 
all  modern  criticism  of  the  Scriptures,  and  orders  the 
Bible  to  be  accepted  in  accordance  with  the  views  of  the 
theologians  of  Trent;  she  openly  avows  her  hatred  of 
free  institutions  and  constitutional  systems,  and  declares 
that  those  are  in  damnable  error  who  regard  the  recon- 
ciliation of  the  pope  with  modern  civilization  as  either 
possible  or  desirable. 

But  the  spirit  of  the  age  demands — is  the  human 
intellect  to  be  subordinated  to  the  Tridentine  Fathers, 
or  to  the  fancy  of  illiterate  and  uncritical  persons  who 
wrote  in  the  earlier  ages  of  the  Church?  It  sees  no 
merit  in  blind  faith,  but  rather  distrusts  it.  It  looks 
forward  to  an  improvement  in  the  popular  canon  of 
credibility  for  a  decision  between  fact  and  fiction.  It 
does  not  consider  itself  bound  to  believe  fables  and 
falsehoods  that  have  been  invented  for  ecclesiastical 


SCIENCE  AND  PROTESTANTISM.  363 

ends.  It  finds  no  argument  in  behalf  of  their  truth, 
that  traditions  and  legends  have  been  long-lived;  in 
this  respect,  those  of  the  Church  are  greatly  inferior 
to  the  fables  of  paganism.  The  longevity  of  the  Church 
itself  is  not  due  to  divine  protection  or  intervention,  but 
to  the  skill  with  which  it  has  adapted  its  policy  to  exist- 
ing circumstances.  If  antiquity  be  the  criterion  of  au- 
thenticity, the  claims  of  Buddhism  must  be  respected; 
it  has  the  superior  warrant  of  many  centuries.  There 
can  be  no  defense  of  those  deliberate  falsifications  of 
history,  that  concealment  of  historical  facts,  of  which 
the  Church  has  so  often  taken  advantage.  In  these 
things  the  end  does  not  justify  the  means. 

Then  has  it  in  truth  come  to  this,  that  Roman  Chris- 
tianity and  Science  are  recognized  by  their  respective 
adherents  as  being  absolutely  incompatible;  they  can- 
not exist  together;  one  must  yield  to  the  other;  man- 
kind must  make  its  choice — it  cannot  have  both. 

While  such  is,  perhaps,  the  issue  as  regards  Catholi- 
cism, a  reconciliation  of  the  Eeformation  with  Science 
is"  not  only  possible,  but  would  easily  take  place,  if  the 
Protestant  Churches  would  only  live  up  to  the  maxim 
taught  by  Luther,  and  established  by  so  many  years  of 
war.  That  maxim  is,  the  right  of  private  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Scriptures.  It  was  the  foundation  of  intel- 
lectual liberty.  But,  if  a  personal  interpretation  of  the 
book  of  Revelation  is  permissible,  how  can  it  be  denied 
in  the  case  of  the  book  of  Nature?  In  the  misunder- 
standings that  have  taken  place,  we  must  ever  bear  in 
mind  the  infirmities  of  men.  The  generations  that  im- 
mediately followed  the  Reformation  may  perhaps  be 
excused  for  not  comprehending  the  full  significance  of 
their  cardinal  principle,  and  for  not  on  all  occasions  car- 
rying it  into  effect.  When  Calvin  caused  Servetus  to 


3G4:  SCIENCE  AND  FAITH. 

be  burnt,  he  was  animated,  not  by  the  principles  of  the 
Reformation,  but  by  those  of  Catholicism,  from  which 
he  had  not  been  able  to  emancipate  himself  completely. 
And  when  the  clergy  of  influential  Protestant  confes- 
sions have  stigmatized  the  investigators  of  Nature  as 
infidels  and  atheists,  the  same  may  be  said.  For  Catholi- 
cism to  reconcile  itself  to  Science,  there  are  formidable, 
perhaps  insuperable  obstacles  in  the  way.  For  Protes- 
tantism to  achieve  that  great  result  there  are  not.  In 
the  one  case  there  is  a  bitter,  a  mortal  animosity  to  be 
overcome;  in  the  other,  a  friendship,  that  misunder- 
standings have  alienated,  to  be  restored. 

But,  whatever  may  be  the  preparatory  incidents  of 
that  great  impending  intellectual  crisis  which  Christen- 
dom must  soon  inevitably  witness,  of  this  we  may  rest 
assured,  that  the  silent  secession  from  the  public  faith, 
which  in  so  ominous  a  manner  characterizes  the  pres- 
ent generation,  will  find  at  length  political  expression. 
It  is  not  without  significance  that  France  reenforces  the 
ultramontane  tendencies  of  her  lower  population,  by  the 
promotion  of  pilgrimages,  the  perpetration  of  miracles, 
the  exhibition  of  celestial  apparitions.  Constrained  to 
do  this  by  her  destiny,  she  does  it  with  a  blush.  It  is 
not  without  significance  that  Germany  resolves  to  rid 
herself  of  the  incubus  of  a  dual  government,  by  the 
exclusion  of  the  Italian  element,  and  to  carry  to  its 
completion  that  Reformation  which  three  centuries  ago 
she  left  unfinished.  The  time  approaches  when  men 
must  take  their  choice  between  quiescent,  immobile  faith 
and  ever-advancing  Science — faith,  with  its  mediaeval 
consolations,  Science,  which  is  incessantly  scattering  its 
material  blessings  in  the  pathway  of  life,  elevating  the 
lot  of  man  in  this  world,  and  unifying  the  human  race. 


CIVILIZATION  AND  RELIGION.  365 

Its  triumphs  are  solid  and  enduring.  But  the  glory 
which  Catholicism  might  gain  from  a  conflict  with  ma- 
terial ideas  is  at  the  best  only  like  that  of  other  celestial 
meteors  when  they  touch  the  atmosphere  of  the  earth 
— transitory  and  useless. 

Though  Guizot's  affirmation  that  the  Church  has 
always  sided  with  despotism  is  only  too  true,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  in  the  policy  she  follows  there 
is  much  of  political  necessity.  She  is  urged  on  by  the 
pressure  of  nineteen  centuries.  But,  if  the  irresistible 
indicates  itself  in  her  action,  the  inevitable  manifests 
itself  in  her  life.  For  it  is  with  the  papacy  as  with  a 
man.  It  has  passed  through  the  struggles  of  infancy, 
it  has  displayed  the  energies  of  maturity,  and,  its  work 
completed,  it  must  sink  into  the  feebleness  and  queru- 
lousness  of  old  age.  Its  youth  can  never  be  renewed. 
The  influence  of  its  souvenirs  alone  will  remain.  As 
pagan  Eome  threw  her  departing  shadow  over  the  em- 
pire and  tinctured  all  its  thoughts,  so  Christian  Eome 
casts  her  parting  shadow  over  Europe. 

Will  modern  civilization  consent  to  abandon  the 
-career  of  advancement  which  has  given  it  so  much  power 
and  happiness?  Will  it  consent  to  retrace  its  steps  to  the 
semi-barbarian  ignorance  and  superstition  of  the  middle 
ages?  Will  it  submit  to  the  dictation  of  a  power,  which, 
claiming  divine  authority,  can  present  no  adequate  cre- 
dentials of  its  office;  a  power  which  kept  Europe  in  a 
stagnant  condition  for  many  centuries,  ferociously  sup- 
pressing by  the  stake  and  the  sword  every  attempt  at 
progress;  a  power  that  is  founded  in  a  cloud  of  myste- 
ries; that  sets  itself  above  reason  and  common-sense; 
that  loudly  proclaims  the  hatred  it  entertains  against 
liberty  of  thought  and  freedom  in  civil  institutions;  that 
professes  its  intention  of  repressing  the  one  and  destroy- 


366     INADMISSIBLE  CLAIMS  OP  CATHOLICISM. 

ing  the  other  whenever  it  can  find  the  opportunity;  that 
denounces  as  most  pernicious  and  insane  the  opinion 
that  liberty  of  conscience  and  of  worship  is  the  right  of 
every  man;  that  protests  against  that  right  being  pro- 
claimed and  asserted  by  law  in  every  well-governed 
state;  that  contemptuously  repudiates  the  principle  that 
the  will  of  the  people,  manifested  by  public  opinion  (as 
it  is  called)  or  by  other  means,  shall  constitute  law;  that 
refuses  to  every  man  any  title  to  opinion  in  matters  of 
religion,  but  holds  that  it  is  simply  his  duty  to  believe 
what  he  is  told  by  the  Church,  and  to  obey  her  com- 
mands; that  will  not  permit  any  temporal  government 
to  define  the  rights  and  prescribe  limits  to  the  authority 
of  the  Church;  that  declares  it  not  only  may  but  will 
resort  to  force  to  discipline  disobedient  individuals;  that 
invades  the  sanctity  of  private  life,  by  making,  at  the 
confessional,  the  wife  and  daughters  and  servants  of  one 
suspected,  spies  and  informers  against  him;  that  tries 
him  without  an  accuser,  and  by  torture  makes  him  bear 
witness  against  himself;  that  denies  the  right  of  parents 
to  educate  their  children  outside  of  its  own  Church,  and 
insists  that  to  it  alone  belongs  the  supervision  of  domes- 
tic life  and  the  control  of  marriages  and  divorces;  that 
denounces  "the  impudence"  of  those  who  presume  to 
subordinate  the  authority  of  the  Church  to  the  civil  au- 
thority, or  who  advocate  the  separation  of  the  Church 
from  the  state;  that  absolutely  repudiates  all  toleration, 
and  affirms  that  the  Catholic  religion  is  entitled  to  be 
held  as  the  only  religion  in  every  country,  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  all  other  modes  of  worship;  that  requires  all  laws 
standing  in  the  way  of  its  interests  to  be  repealed, 
and,  if  that  be  refused,  orders  all  its  followers  to  disobey 
them? 

This  power,  conscious  that  it  can  work  no  miracle  to 


ISSUE  OP  THE  CONFLICT.  367 

serve  itself,  does  not  hesitate  to  disturb  society  by  its 
intrigues  against  governments,  and  seeks  to  accomplish 
its  ends  by  alliances  with  despotism. 

Claims  such  as  these  mean  a  revolt  against  modern 
civilization,  an  intention  of  destroying  it,  no  matter  at 
what  social  cost.  To  submit  to  them  without  resistance, 
men  must  be  slaves  indeed! 

As  to  the  issue  of  the  coming  conflict,  can  any  one 
doubt?  Whatever  is  resting  on  fiction  and  fraud  will 
be  overthrown.  Institutions  that  organize  impostures 
and  spread  delusions  must  show  what  right  they  have 
to  exist.  Faith  must  render  an  account  of  herself  to 
Reason.  Mysteries  must  give  place  to  facts.  Religion 
must  relinquish  that  imperious,  that  domineering  posi- 
tion which  she  has  so  long  maintained  against  Science. 
There  must  be  absolute  freedom  for  thought.  The 
ecclesiastic  must  learn  to  keep  himself  within  the  do- 
main he  has  chosen,  and  cease  to  tyrannize  over  the 
philosopher,  who,  conscious  of  his  own  strength  and 
the  purity  of  his  motives,  will  bear  such  interference 
no  longer.  What  was  written  by  Esdras  near  the  wil- 
low-fringed rivers  of  Babylon,  more  than  twenty-three 
centuries  ago,  still  holds  good:  "As  for  Truth,  it  en- 
dureth  and  is  always  strong;  it  liveth  and  conquereth 
for  evermore." 


INDEX. 


ABSORPTION,  doctrine  of,  122. 

Abubeker  invades  Syria,  87. 

Active  intellect,  138. 

.-Kiu'iis  Sylvius's  description  of  the 
British  Isles,  265. 

Agesilaus,  his  expedition,  5. 

Alexander  invades  Persia,  6 ;  death 
of,  16. 

Alexandria,  foundation  of,  17 ;  Mu- 
seum, 18;  library,  19;  captured 
by  Amrpu,  94. 

Al-Gazzali,  quotation  from,  101 ;  on 
the  soul,  127. 

Algebra  invented  by  the  Saracens, 
112,115,804. 

Alhazen,  117. 

Alliance,  Evangelical,  852. 

Almagest,  112. 

Al-Mamun  measures  the  earth,  109, 
155;  his  libraries,  112;  quotation 
from,  115 ;  denounced,  142 ;  trans- 
lates the  "  Syntaxis,"  158. 

Almansor  at  Bagdad,  111. 

America,  discovery  of,  159;  its 
progress,  286. 

American  Revolution,  324. 

Amrou  invades  Egypt,  93 ;  consults 
the  khalif  about  the  Alexandrian 
Library,  102. 

Anaesthetics,  318. 

Anathema,  Nicene,  53 ;  of  the  Vati- 
can Council,  350. 

Andalusia,  conquest  of,  96 ;  civili- 
zation of,  141. 

Animals,  are  they  automata?  128- 
186. 

Antipodes,  St.  Augustine  on  the,  64. 

Apolionius,  his  mathematical  works, 
29;  water-clock  of,  31. 


Aquinas,  St/Thomas,  resisto  Averro- 
ism,  150. 

Arabs,  their  fatalism,  10*5;  litera- 
ture, 111 ;  manufacture  and  airri- 
culture.  117  ;  inventions  and  dis- 
coveries, 158. 

Arbela,  battle  of,  6. 

Archimedes,  28. 

Argyll,  Duke  of,  quotation  from, 
223. 

Ar'mtarchus,  156. 

Aristotelian  philosophy,  22. 

Arithmetic,  Indian,  115. 

Arius,  51 ;  councils  respecting,  205. 

Assyrian  printing,  14. 

Astronomy,  Arabian,  116 ;  periods 
of  progress,  232. 

Atmospheric  refraction,  117, 158. 

Augustine  denounces  Pelagius,  56 ; 
review  of  his  writings,  58-62 ;  on 
antipodes,  64. 

Auricular  confession,  207. 

Avcrroism,  124, 13!»;  in  Andalusia, 
142 ;  opposed  by  the  Dominicans, 
143;  in  Europe,  149;  in  Italy, 
150,  210. 

B. 

Babylon,  10. 

Babylonian  astronomy,  18. 

Bacon,  Lord,  233. 

Bagdad  a  centre  of  science,  111. 

Bahira  converts  Mohammed,  78. 

Bartholomew's  eve,  214. 

Bede,    Venerable,    quotation    from 

the,  65. 

Bozrah,  fall  of,  88. 
Bradley  discovers  aberration  of  tho 

stars,  172. 
Bruno,  177 ;  is  murdered,  180. 


368 


INDEX. 


369 


Buddhism,  doctrine  as  to  the  soul, 
122;  nature  of,  138. 

C. 

Caaba,  86. 

Cajetan  to  Luther,  211. 

Callistheues,  death  of,  16. 

Calvin,  213;  burns  Servetus,  216; 
on  predestination,  252. 

Cape,  the,  doubling  of,  163,  294 

Cardinals,  college  of,  276. 

Carthage'  burned  by  the  Saracens, 
95;  had  introduced  Latin  Chris- 
tianity, 95. 

Cassini  discovers  the  oblateness  of 
Jupiter,  188. 

Catholicity,  the  failure  of,  285,  321. 

Censorship,  293. 

Chain  of  Destiny,  108. 

Chakia  Mouni,  138. 

Chaldean  Church  established,  73; 
observations,  13. 

Chemistry,  origin  of,  112-116. 

Chosroes*  invades  the  Koman  Em- 
pire, 76 ;  captures  Jerusalem,  76 ; 
carries  off  the  cross,  77. 

Christianity,  origin  of,  34;  pagan- 
ization,  46 ;  transformed  into  a 
political  system,  52. 

Chronology,  vulgar,  184;  patristic, 
184. 

Chronometer,  312. 

Church,  Catholic,  its  numbers,  328 ; 
its  pretensions,  329 ;  appanage  of 
Italy,  341 ;  its  claims,  365. 

Circumnavigation  of  the  earth,  163. 

Civilization  and  Catholicity,  282. 

Clay  libraries,  13. 

Clementine  Constitutions,  211. 

Colenso  on  the  Pentateuch,  219. 

Coliseum,  256. 

Colleges,  Arabian,  214. 

Columbus,  voyage  of,  159 ;  discov- 
ers the  line  of  no  variation,  162. 

Confusion  of  tongues,  186. 

Conservation  of  force,  358. 

Constantine  becomes  emperor,  39; 
his  gift  to  the  pope,  272. 

Constitution,  dogmatic,  of  Catholic 
faith,  344,  354. 

Cooling  of  the  earth,  245. 

Copernicus,  167 ;  his  system  estab- 
lished, 172. 

Cosmas  Indicopleustes,  64, 154. 

Cosmogony,  scientific,  188. 

Councils  determine  truth,  204;  in- 
fallible, 226. 

Creation  and  evolution,  192. 


Crisis,  impending,  327. 
Criterion  of  truth,  201. 
Crown  of  thorns,  270. 
Ctesibius  invents  the  fire-engine,  31. 
Curia,  its  business,  274. 
Cyril  murders  Hypatia,  55 ;  bribes 
the  eunuch,  72. 

D. 

Damascus,  fall  of,  76,  89. 

Death,  introduction  of,  into  the 
world,  56. 

Decretals,  Isidorlan,  271. 

De  Dominis,  punishment  of,  319. 

De  Gaina,  16ii,  294. 

Decree,  measure  of  a,  165,  236. 

D'Llcano,  Sebastian,  completes  cir- 
cumnavigation, 164. 

Deluge,  its  date,  185. 

Descartes  on  automata,  128-130 ;  his 
geometry,  305. 

"  De  Tribus  Impostoribus,"  148. 

Development  theory,  118,  248. 

Diocletian  opposes  Christianity,  38  ; 
abdication  of,  39. 

Dionysius  Exiguus  constructs  chro- 
nology, 184. 

Dogmatic  constitution  of  Catholic 
faith,  344,  354. 

Domestic  improvements,  314-316. 

Dual  government,  266,  342. 

Dualism,  15. 

Du  Bois-Keymond  on  the  ant,  129. 

E. 

Earth,  its  form,  108;  measured  by 
Al-Mamun,  109 :  theological  view 
of,  153;  measures  of,  155,  165; 
circumnavigation  of,  164;  meas- 
ured by  the  French,  166;  dimen- 
sions of,  167,  174;  distance  from 
the  sun,  173;  age  of,  182;  oblate- 
ness  of,  189;  formation  of,  189; 
antiquity  of,  194 ;  decline  of  her 
heat,  244. 

East,  the,  peculiarities  of  its  reli- 
gious opinions,  69. 

Ecclesiastic,  the,  recommended  to 
remember  the  past,  360. 

Edessa,  college  of,  73.       f 

Electric  telegraph,  311. 

Emanation,  doctrine  of,  122,  358. 

Encyclical  Letter,  352. 

Encvclopaedias,  Arabian,  114. 

England,  population  of,  262. 

Ephesus,  Council  of,  72. 


INDKX. 


Kjiiphonhm  on  mineralogy,  214. 

Eratosthenes,  his  works,  28;  meas- 
ures tin'  earth,  155. 

Kriirena,  his  philosophy,  l'J">. 

Kucli.l,  -J7. 

Europe,  its  social  condition,  264, 
•_•'•, s,  270;  at  the  Reformation, 
•-'''•."> ;  dual  government  in,  iS'i ; 
]>opulation,  L'ti4,  827;  socto  of, 

M& 

Evangelical  Alliance,  352. 
Everlasting  gospel,  148,  206. 
Evolution,  doctrine  of,  247. 
Kymcric,  the  inquisitor,  208. 
Ezra,  author  of  the  Pentateuch,  222 ; 
quotation  from,  367. 


f. 


Fathers  of  the  Church,  their  char- 
acter, 188. 

Fatalism  of  Arabs,  106. 
Faustus,  his  appeal  to  Augustine, 

ta 

Ferncl  measures  the  earth,  165. 

Force,  its  indestructibility,  126. 

Fratricelli,  their  opinion,  284.  - 

Fraunhofer  on  spectra,  241. 

Frederick  II.,  his  "Sicilian  Ques- 
tions," 151. 

"  Free  Spirit,"  Brethren  and  Sisters 
of  the,  209. 

French  Revolution,  324. 

G. 

Galileo,  discoveries  of,  170  ;  punish- 
ment, 171 ;  mechanics,  233. 

Genesis  the  basis  of  Christianity, 
57 ;  Augustine's  interpretation  of, 
59;  criticism  on,  219. 

Geometry  improved  by  the  Sara- 
cens, 112. 

Government  of  the  world  by  law, 
229. 

Granada,  surrender  of,  148. 

Gratian's  "  Decretum,"  211,  273. 

Gravitation,  universal,  235. 

Guizot,  his  affirmation,  365. 

H. 

Hakem,  his  library,  142. 
Halley's  comet,  269,  320. 
Hallucinations,  religious  cause  of, 

82. 
Haroun  -  al  -  Kaschid     organizes 

schools,  111. 


,  description  of,  70;  the  Mo- 


Helena     paganizes       Christianity, 

lleraelius,  his  expedition  t<> 
staiitinople,  75;  war  with  Chos- 
rocs,  76;  farewell  to  Syria,  HI. 

HI-P)   invent*    the    steam  -  engine, 
82. 

Herschel  on  double  stars,  238;  on 
the  nebular  hypothesis,  •_'!". 

Hilary  of  Poictiers,  quotation  from, 
203. 

Hipparchus,  29. 

Holy  Ghost,  finger  of  the,  270. 

Hoiiiuti  the  bookseller,  118. 

lluber  on  insects,  129. 

Huggins  on  nebula,  241. 

Humboldt  on  effect  of  Nature,  12. 

Hupfcld  on  the  Pentateuch,  224. 

Hyucinthe,  Pere,  his  views,  851. 

I  ly  patio,  murder  of,  55. 


Ibn-Junis,  116, 159. 
I  IK-OS,  religious  ideas  of  the,  357. 
Index  Expurgatprius,  217. 
Indian  arithmetic,  115. 
Individualism,  295. 
Indulgences,  212. 
Infallibility,  225. 
Inoculation,  218. 

Inquisition,  144,  207, 279 ;  an  urgent 
necessity,  362. 


Insurance,  317. 
Intervention  and  law,  252. 
Inventions,  scientific,  311. 
Isis,  worship  of,  restored,  48,  71. 

J. 

Jerusalem  surrenders  to  Alexander, 
7;  to  Chosrocs,  76;  to  the  Sara- 
cens, 90,  91. 

Jesuiabbos  treats  with  Mohammed, 
105. 

Jesuits  in  Prussia,  840. 

Jews,  their  conversion  ceases,  105; 
influence  on  the  Saracens,  105; 
their  psychology,  124;  in  Spain, 
144;  banished  from  Spain,  147. 

John  the  Grammarian,  105. 

Jugglery.  319. 

Justinian  closes  paean  schools,  5<?< 
Pandects  of,  -j]o;  effect  of  his 
Italian  war.- 


INDEX. 


371 


K. 

Kepler,  laws  of,  230 ;  condemnation 
of,  231 ;  anticipates  Newton,  232. 
K  haled,  the  Saracen  general,  87. 
Khalifates,  the  three,  99. 
Koran,  the  God  of  the,  84. 

L. 

Lactantius,  quotation  from,  64. 

Lambeth  Articles,  253. 

Language,  the  primitive,  186. 

Languages,  modern,  281. 

Laplace  on  nebular  hypothesis,  239. 

Latin  Christianity,  its  efi'ect,  255; 
language,  use  of,  280. 

Law,  government  of  the  world  by, 
229. 

Legates,  their  duty,  2T3. 

Leibnitz,  accusation  against  New- 
ton, 218. 

Library,  Alexandrian,  19;  disper- 
sion of  the,  54;  destruction  of, 
103;  of  Cairo,  113;  Andalusian, 
113. 

Llamaism,  357. 

Llorente,  on  the  Inquisition,  146. 

Locomotion,  312. 

Logarithms,  invention  of,  306. 

Luther,  212,  295;  against  Aristotle, 
215. 

M. 

Macedonian  campaign,  7. 

Magellan,  his  voyage.  164,  294. 

Magianism,15;  overthrown  by  Mo- 
hammed, 92. 

Maimonicles,  143. 

Man,  antiquity  of,  195;  develop- 
ment of.  249. 

Martel,  Charles,  overthrows  the 
Saracens,  97. 

Mathematics,  303. 

Maurice,  the  Emperor,  74. 

Medical  colleges,  Saracen,  115 ;  im- 
provements, 318. 

Memory,  explanation  of,  134. 

Menu,  Institutes  of,  122. 

Mercantile  inventions,  317. 

Mexico,  diminution  of  population, 
2fi2;  civilization  of,  289. 

Miracle-evidence,  66,  206. 

Mississippi,  advance  of  the,  190. 

Moawyah,  the  Khalif,  110. 

Mohammed,  at  Bozrah,  78 ;  his 
marriage,  80 ;  battles,  82 ;  death, 
83 ;  religious  opinions  of,  84. 

Mohammedanism    an    offshoot   of 


Nestorianism,  85;  popular  doc- 
trines of,  86,  101. 

Monotheism,  tendency  to,  35;  ori- 
gin of,  70. 

Moors  expelled  from  Spain,  148. 

Mosaic  record,  objections  to  the,  195. 

Municipal  improvements,  315. 

Museum,  Alexandrian,  18,  20,  33. 

N. 

Nebular  hypothesis,  239-243. 

Negro  slavery,  288. 

Neptune,  discovery  of,  237. 

Nervous  system,  functions  of,  131. 

Nestor,  51 ;  follows  the  opinions 
of  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia,  71 ; 
quarrels  with  Cyril,  72  ;  trial  of, 
72 ;  death  of,  73. 

Nestorians  are  Aristotelians,  73; 
Mohammedanism  their  offshoot, 
85;  influence  oil  the  Saracens, 
105. 

Newton,  Bishop,  quotation  from,  50. 

Newton,  Sir  I.,  discovers  the  earth's 
oblateness,  189;  his  u  Principia," 
235,  237 ;  example  from  his  phi- 
losophy, 301. 

Nicea,  Council  of,  51,  53,  204. 

Nirwana,  122, 140. 

Noah  divides  the  earth,  185. 

O. 

Observatory  at  Seville.  115. 
Omar,  Jerusalem    surrendered   to, 

90;  at  Medina,  110. 
Organisms,  their  variation,  246. 

P. 

Pandects  of  Justinian,  210. 

Papacy,  the,  its  transformation, 
271 ;  centralization  of  the,  273 ; 
Italian,  341. 

Papal  revenues,  267,  275. 

Paper,  invention  of,  294. 

Parallax  of  the  sun,  174;  of  the 
stars,  175. 

Patriarchs,  their  length  of  life,  187. 

Patristic  philosophy,  63  ;  chronolo- 
«%  185. 

Pelagius,  his  doctrine  and  condem- 
nation. 56. 

Pelayo,  Bishop,  his  statement,  276. 

Pendulum  invented,  116. 

Pentateuch,  Tertullian  on  the,  40 ; 
criticism  of,  219. 

Pergamus,  library  of,  21, 103. 


372 


INDEX. 


Perscpolift,  11. 

Persia,  3 ;  campaigns  in,  74 ;  intel- 
Irrtuul  condition  of,  14 ;  religion 
of,  15. 

Peru,  civilization  of,  289 ;  religious 
ideas  of  the  I  noon,  857. 

Philip  the  Fair,  290. 

Philip  of  Macedon,  6. 

Philo  the  Jew.  1-j::. 

Philoponus,  John,  asks  for  the  Al- 
exandrian Library,  103. 

Philosophy  a  state  crime,  6Q. 

Phlogiston,  802. 

Phocas,  mutiny  of,  74. 

Physicians,  Jewish,  107. 

Picard  measures  the  earth,  165,  236L 

Pigafetti,  164. 

Pius  IX.,  his  objects,  343, 

Platonism,  26. 

Plotinus,  123. 

Polygamy,  practical  effect  of,  100. 

Pope,  the  infallible,  225,  387 ;  elec- 
tion of  the,  276. 

Population,  theory  of,  261, 

Posidonius  measures  the  earth,  155. 

Prayers,  Christian  and  Mohamme- 
dan, 108. 

Precession  of  the  equinoxes,  30, 189. 

Predestination,  252. 

Prehistoric  man,  195. 

Printing,  effects  of,  137,  293, 

Protestantism,  decomposition  of, 
297 ;  reconciliation  with  Science, 
364. 

Prussia,  conflict  of,  with  the  pope, 
339 ;  Church  laws  of,  840. 

Ptolemies,  their  policy,  82. 

Ptolemy,  the  astronomer,  80;  his 
system,  157. 

Ptolemy  Soter,  birth  of,  16;  King 
of  Egypt,  17 ;  an  author,  27. 

Purgatory,  278. 

Pusey,  Dr.,  translation  quoted,  62. 

Pythagorean  system,  156. 

R. 

Railways,  288. 

Reformation,  212,  296,  298,  859. 

Registry  of  nervous  impressions, 
135. 

Renan  on  Averroism,  139. 

Revenues,  papal,  276-278. 

Roman  rites  adopted  into  Chris- 
tianity, 48;  aristocratic  families, 
pagan,  51. 

Romances,  Arabian,  113-117. 

Koinanus,  treason  of,  88. 

Rome,   at    the    Reformation,   256; 


political  condition  of,  259 ;  social 
condition  of,  260;   occupied   by 
the  Italian  army,  387. 
Royal  Society,  308. 


Salerno,  college  of,  11.". 

Saracens,  the,  capture  Jerusalem, 
90;  Alexandria,  94;  Carthage, 
95;  invade  Spain,  96;  France, 
97  ;  insult  Rome,  98 ;  dissensions 
of,  99;  disregard  of  European 
opinion,  99;  dynasties  of,  111. 

Schism,  the  Great,  279,  292. 

Science,  sacred,  62 ;  introduction 
into  Europe,  290;  influence  of, 
810. 

Servetus,  his  opinions  and  murder, 
216,  363. 

Shell-mounds,  198. 

Sixtus  V.,  his  Bible,  359. 

Societies,  Italian  scientific,  300. 

8ophron.iu8  surrenders  Jerusalem, 
90. 

Sosigenes  rectifies  the  calendar,  31. 

Soql,  the,  120 ;  Vatican  Council  on 
the,  121 ;  nature  of  the,  127. 

Spain,  invasion  of,  96. 

Spinoza,  149. 

Stars,  distance  of,  175 ;  new,  177. 

Steam-engine.  312. 

Stoicism,  23,  251. 

Sun,  distance  of  the,  173. 

Syllabus,  332;  analysis  of.  344. 

"  'Syntaxis  "  of  Ptolemy,  30. 

Syphilis,  269. 

Syria  invaded  by  Chosroes,  76 ;  by 
the  Saracens,  87. 


T. 

Tank  invades  Spain,  96. 

Tavlor's  theorem,  806. 

Telegraph,  electric,  311. 

Telescope  invented,  169. 

Tertullian,  his  apology,  89-46. 

Theodosius  closes  the  temples,  54. 

Theophilus  disperses  the  Alexan- 
drian Library,  54. 

Toleration,  298. 

Torquemada,  the  inquisitor,  146; 
burns  Oriental  manuscripts,  146. 

Tower  of  Babel,  186. 

Trent,  Council  of,  214. 

Trigonometry  invented  by  the  Sara- 
cens, 112, 116. 

Trinitarian  dispute,  58. 


INDEX. 


373 


Trinity,  St.  Augustine  on  the,  61 ; 

Plotinus  on,  123. 
Truth,  criterion  of,  201. 

U. 
Universe,  government  of  the,  228. 

V. 

Valentinian  persecutes  Platonistsi 

66. 
Valerius  procures  the  punishment 

of  Pelagius,  56. 
Vanini,  murder  of,  216. 
Variation  of  the  compass,  162. 
Vasco  de  Gama,  162. 
Vatican  Council,  330. 
Vedaism,  121. 
Venus,  transit  of,  173,  320. 
Vicar  of  Christ,  273. 
Vinci,  L.  da,  233,  299. 
Virgin  Mary,  mother  01  God.  72; 

milk  of,  270. 


W. 

Waldenses,  their  declaration,  209. 
William    of   Malmesbury    011    the 

Anglo-Saxons,  266. 
Writing,  effects  of,  137. 

X. 

Xeres,  battle  of,  96. 
Xitnenes  burns  Arabic  manuscripts, 
104;  perfidy  of,  148. 


Yermuck,  battle  of,  89. 

Z. 

Zeno,  23. 

Zoroaster,  his  religion,  15. 
Zosimus  reverses    the    opinion   of 
Innocent  I.,  56. 


THE    END. 


26 


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